Explains Everything
by Shulik
Summary: Buffy takes Dawn and moves to Forks, Washington where a new lucrative job along with a university scholarship awaits her.


**EXPLAINS EVERYTHING**

**TWILIGHT/BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER/ ANGEL THE SERIES crossover. **

**Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight, Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy own everything Buffy. **

**All of my work is posted on Twisting the Hellmouth, but I've been getting emails from people asking why I haven't posted this Twilight/Buffy cross on here. This is my longest work, 37 chapters, and frankly I was too tired to be breaking it up into individual parts to post on here. So I did it all in one go. **

**Couple of warnings: I am not a Twihard in any shape or form, I *do* make fun of Meyer's writing on here, I do a lot of things with the characters that she didn't. Read this whole warning before reading the story and then deciding that you just have to make me see the error of my ways. I won't. **

**I swear, I have a weird sense of humor and there's a bit of smut in here- be aware of this. **

**I'm anti-Twilight, (Team Spike all the way!), so this is my way of challenging myself to see if I can actually write Edward and Bella as sympathetic characters.  
Also, I'm going to be messing with the Meyer mythology a bit because let's face it- sparkly vampires suck. It goes everything in vampire lore, and it's just illogical. If vamps were that hard to kill, what would stop them from taking over the human population? Also, if vamps with Dracula-like gifts were as common as Meyer wrote them to be, chances are that the humans around them would be dead, dead, dead. Seeing as how the Cullens are a major anomaly in the Meyer vamp world, there really would be nothing standing between vamps like James, Victoria and Laurent and the humans they view as snacks.**

**So- be prepared for me to shift things around. Probably in a major way.**

**Let me know if you like this, R&R and enjoy!**

**Summary:** Buffy takes Dawn and moves to Forks, Washington where a new lucrative job along with a university scholarship awaits her.

**1. Family Night**

Buffy and Co belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. Actually I think they may just belong to Mutant Enemy and/or Kuzui Enterprises now.

Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer.

Response to Anneliese's BtVS/Twilight Challenge on Twisting the Hellmouth.

Dawn has just turned eighteen in this story, she's going into her senior year of high school. Having missed a year of school while dealing with the First in Sunnydale, and the whole town evacuating- she's going to be a bit older than the other kids in her classes.

Buffy's twenty five.

"Hey Buffy! You've got mail sitting on the countertop!" Dawn's voice yelled out somewhere from upstairs as her older sister sighed. The girl had just turned eighteen and she *still* behaved like a young teen sometimes.

Buffy dumped her bag and papers on the high chair nearest to the door and went into the kitchen, shrugging off her jacket with one hand while the other one was opening the freezer and taking out an extra large everything toppings pizza. The pounding of feet alerted her to her sister's presence and Dawn squeezed her five foot nine frame past Buffy as she reached for some chocolate milk.

"Oh hey cool, we're having pizza for dinner" Dawn was a lot more optimistic about life now that she didn't have to share her sister with everybody that needed Buffy to be their general.  
Buffy smiled at her much taller sibling "we've been having pizza for the last week in a row, you don't have to act like you still like it."

Dawn huffed and then grinned unrepentantly "Buff, you know I don't care what we eat. I just want to spend time with my older sister," she jumped up and with a throwback to her younger, coltish grace she enveloped her sister in a hug. The Summers sisters stood like that for a while and then Dawn jumped back to her seat, sprinkling cinnamon on top of her chocolate milk.

Buffy wrinkled her nose "ewww, how can you drink that? Doesn't it make the milk go bad?"

"Nope, if you drink within the first five minutes before the cinnamon completely dissolves it gives it this nice foamy taste" as usual, her little sister's tastebuds were completely wacked, either by funky monk engineering or by some cosmic joke that the Powers were surely laughing at to this day.

Buffy moved towards the mail on the counter, flipping through every letter she casually asked "Have you heard anything from the guys lately?"

Dawn stilled her movements of joy at consuming her yucky beverage of choice and looked at her sister carefully.  
"Sorry, I haven't talked to them since LA."

**Two years ago.**

After the destruction of Sunnydale, when the bus full of injured potentials turned into healing slayers rolled into LA, the first place that they looked to for help was Angel who was dealing with his own apocalypse. She and Faith were the first to volunteer to help him, while Giles and Xander refused anything to do with 'Deadboy' as Xander kept referring to him. That was the second big rift in their relationship. The first one was of course the moment when they decided to kick her out of her own house, not content with her style of leadership they voted to disgrace the only person who had stood between annihilation and them time and again. Sure Buffy came back, sure she saved the day but after that night when she had felt as the lowest of the low, that night when she questioned her living purpose- she never quite forgave her friends, the ones that could betray her so easily and then act as if nothing happened.

During their stay in LA, it was Giles who was the most excited about reconstructing the new Council, about starting over the support structure for the hundreds of slayers awakening all over the earth. Willow was busy, basking in the glow of newfound love with the eighteen year old Kennedy to worry about the fact that the oldest slayer alive only came down to join the others for meal times and spent the rest of her time cooped up in her room, talking with either Dawn or Angel. Buffy's sister was the only one to come up and apologize for her betrayal, sobbing tears of remorse she crawled into bed with her and spent the whole night talking, rehashing over old wrongs, mending broken fences and bonding more than they had in the previous three years. Angel, beautiful brooding Angel was another surprise. Buffy no longer looked at him with longing, with the faint hope that someday he would be the one to 'taste her ready cookie dough'. As stupid as the analogy had been, it was right. She couldn't spend the rest of her life waiting for him to forgive himself, she was twenty three years old and she was tired of living in the shadows.

So Buffy planned, with her sister backing up her every move she planned for the rest of her life. They talked about their hopes and dreams, what they wanted most from the world and Buffy realized now that all the slayers were activated, she really didn't have any obligation to stay with the rest of the gang. The gang who were too busy ignoring the leader they so easily betrayed, they weren't factored into Buffy and Dawn's plans. Buffy talked about how she wanted to finish her psychology degree, despite that evil bitch Maggie Walsh she still felt passionate about helping people. Dawn talked about her love of art, her feeling of closeness to their mother whenever she was in an art gallery or a museum. She talked about the fine arts programs in various colleges and Buffy, for the first time in a long time, *really* listened to her sister.

It was Faith that surprised them the most though. She and Robin came up into Buffy's room one night, holding hands and carrying a briefcase. She grinned her usual cocky smirk and then proceeded to destroy Buffy's expectations of the old Faith Lehane and became somebody much closer. Somebody that Buffy owed her new life to.

She sat on the bed between the two sisters as Robin leaned casually against the doorway, keeping an eye out for any eavesdroppers.

"Faith," Buffy cautiously greeted her sister slayer who had been conspicuously absent from most of the meetings.

"Hey B," her face fresh from the harsh makeup she normally wore, Faith was beautiful and happy as she shared a smile with Robin.

"Listen B, I know that I never got the chance to apologize for what happened, but I am. Sorry, I mean. I'm sorry." She laughed a little self consciously.

Buffy smiled at her gently and squeezed her hand, " I know that you never wanted that to happen. And you did apologize, on the porch."

Faith cleared her throat and opened the briefcase.  
"Yeah thanks. Listen, I know the rest of these idiots are planning for you to take the lead on building the new council but I somehow don't think that's really your cup of tea," she took out a bunch of papers.

"I know that you really liked working that counseling job, and despite everything the hellmouth threw at ya- you were good at it," at that point Robin came closer and sat on a chair by the bed.

"Buffy you've dealt with everything that high school could throw at you, I really believe you've made a big difference in these children's lives." The bald black man smiled at Buffy, their previous animosity was almost gone.

Buffy could only gape as Dawn took her hand and sat squeezing it in nervous anticipation.

Faith continued. "So me and Robs here, we've decided to give you a little going away present. There's a high school in San Diego hiring a guidance counselor, and well- Robin nominated you for the position. We sent all your old papers into there and you have an interview next Wednesday."

Buffy couldn't speak as she just threw herself at her sister slayer, hugging all the air out of her. If Faith had been a normal girl, the blonde would probably have broken a couple of her ribs with the force of her hug.

That night was the biggest scandal the Scooby gang had ever had, complete with lashing out at each other, accusations being thrown back and forth. Nothing was getting resolved, and at four in the morning Buffy had stood up from where an angry Xander was still blaming her for Anya's death and told them that whether they liked it or not- she was leaving, and taking Dawn with her. There was nothing for her there anymore, she didn't need to lead them, didn't need to protect them. And more importantly, she didn't want to.

That was two years ago and the lines of communication still remained closed between the former best friends.

"Buffy, Buffy, Buffy!" her sister's voice brought the blonde slayer out of her reverie.

She smiled at Dawn "sorry, zoned out there for a second."

Dawn snorted as she began opening the mail "Yeah, more like for five minutes."

The older, more mature sister stuck her tongue out as she began setting the table.

Dawn's voice stopped her right as she was pouring OJ into the pitcher.

"Hey Buff, you should probably read this letter."

"My hands are busy, just read it out loud to me," Buffy replied while continuing to set dishes down. Living with her mom taught her about the importance of aesthetics, so the sisters always had a small bouquet of fresh flowers on their dining table. Buffy smiled as she smelled the fresh, summery scent coming from the orchids.

"Here's the gist of it, a high school in Washington is asking you to come for an open counseling position. They're even prepared to throw in a university scholarship for you and a partial scholarship for me for next year," Dawn's voice rose in excitement.

Buffy stopped in her tracks, money had been alright but now that she was finishing her Bachelor's and thinking about doing a Master's in Youth Psychology and Dawn was finishing up her junior year of high school, they really needed to start thinking of their options on how to pay for their respective educations.

"Where's the high school?" Buffy didn't let her voice rise in pitch, knowing that celebrating too early could result in catastrophe as Murphy really had a thing for taking all the happy out of her life. Two years away from the hellmouth and Buffy would rather be cautious than sorry.

"Forks, Washington. Hold on," Dawn jumped off the chair and raced for her laptop in the living room. Bringing it back with her she was already reading the statistics of the town.

"Everything looks good, it's a dinky little town with only about four thousand people but it's really close to the University of Washington where we'd be going to school. Plus, it has a really good fine arts program going on at their high school" Dawn grinned as she raised her eyes to her sister.

"Buffy with the salary they're offering you, we'd be able to save up so much more than we're saving here. Everything's always cheaper in small towns, " she imparted this nugget of wisdom with a sage nod of the head.

"Let me see that letter," Buffy raised her hand for the job invitation. Looking over it, a twinkle of real excitement began to sparkle in her eyes.

"I'm going to call Faith, see what Robin says about the school. We'll decide once we get all the info." She was still looking at the letter, a look of wonderment crept onto her features.

"Buffy, this could really be the answer to all our questions. No more supernatural, no more weirdness- just the Summers sisters making it in the wild."

Buffy grinned, "I hardly think that Washington constitutes as the wild Dawnie."

"Yeah well, they don't have a mall in Forks. You have to drive thirty minutes to get to the best shopping, but apparently they have some really cool boutiques once you get there." Dawn murmured, aware of her and her sister's need for retail therapy.

Buffy mock gasped and raised a hand to her chest "My Lord! However will we survive without a mall in town?" unconsciously she was almost parroting Giles but Dawn didn't feel the need to call her on it.

The oven dinged and as Buffy brought the pizza to the table, she smiled for real this time.

"We'll see Dawnie, but if everything turns out to be okay- then this could really be the answer we've been looking for."

Dawn flipped her waist length hair over her shoulder and pronounced dramatically, "Forks doesn't know what's coming. Cause watch out Washington! The Summers girls are coming to town!"

She and Buffy dissolved into helpless giggles at her overdramatic posturing and settled down into their dinner, full of joy, jokes and more love than most sisters shared.

**2. Welcome to town**

See disclaimers in ch.1

A/N- SEE, reviewing this story will definitely make me work faster. Two updates in one day, that's awesome for a procrastinator like me!

Thank God Buffy's driving had improved over the years, she could now compensate for the fact that other drivers didn't have her supernatural reflexes and she wasn't such a menace behind the wheel anymore.

Dawn smiled behind her Ray Bans as she stuck her hand out of the window, the warm wind whipped through her hair as she reveled in the feeling of sunlight on her skin. Buffy was humming one of her favourite songs as the radio was cranked up to the loudest level it could go to, a Uhaul connected to their car full of their posessions trailed after them like a big flag signaling to everybody that they were moving. Dawn smiled, she knew that she would have most likely been bitchy about yet another move but all she could do was bask in the feeling of happiness that something was going right for them in such a major way.

Buffy's interview with the principal of Forks High School was conducted over the phone, and combined with her glowing recommendations and letters of support from her students- it was a no brainer that the school was paying for them to move from California to Washington. They decided to do the roadtrip thing, both of them had their licenses and could take turns driving if the other one got too tired. They had lots of junk foody goodness, stocking up on chocolate to keep them hyper on sugar and turkey sandwiches that Dawn made before heading out for their new life.

Dawn glanced at her sister who was singing along to the radio, her surprisingly pretty voice rising and falling along to the song. Buffy caught her look and grinned in happiness, winking at her before signaling a turn into Clallam county. Their cherry red Pontiac Firebird revved as it hugged the curves, the cosmopolitan feeling of the big city giving way to the more countryside scenery of trees and gorgeous nature.

Buffy turned down the radio, "Dawnie I can smell the sea." The look of happiness on her face was rarely seen in Sunnydale and Dawn was glad that her sister was smiling a lot more often these days.

Dawn laughed, "Buffy, you know that we're not in California anymore. You can't go tanning on the beach here."

Buffy shrugged unrepentant, and smiled again " I don't care, as long as I have water near where we live- I can die a happy woman."

Impulsively, the younger sister leaned across her seat and gave Buffy a peck on the cheek. Buffy glowed with happiness and carefree goodwill as she smiled at Dawn, turning up the radio they followed the signs into the town of Forks.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Carlisle Cullen stood in his kitchen staring out into the trees surrounding his house, his arm slung around his wife Esme as they both contemplated what the arrival of their last living descendant would bring.

"Do you think we're doing the right thing bringing them into this world?" Carlisle murmured pressing a kiss to Esme's temple. "I mean with the Volturi and Victoria - if they find out that vampires are hiding living human descendants, there's bound to be trouble. Am I being selfish wanting Buffy somewhere close?"

Esme shook her head "no honey, she's family. Besides, we need to see what's going on in her life. Why there are records of her death but she's enrolled in school. We need to make sure that she's safe, and we'll do whatever it takes to keep her that way."

Carlisle smiled and hugged her closer to him, as he turned around to face his assembled children- he noticed a look of distress on Alice's pixie like features.

"I still can't see anything about her, it's like there's a green mist surrounding everything she does," Alice complained while Jasper tried to ease her worries.

"Don't worry, we've received word that she's accepted the counseling position and that she's bringing her little sister with her. She will be going to the University of Washington to finish her degree and Dawn will be enrolling with you all at Forks High." He and Esme had kept careful tabs on their descendants but the fact that Buffy had a younger sister still came as a shock to them. Joyce was their direct descendant, a many times granddaughter that died leaving her two children alone with a deadbeat father offering no support to them. Carlisle tried sending money to them as a long lost relative, but he never received confirmation that they received anything.

Now that Buffy and Dawn would be coming to live in Forks, he and his family would make sure to keep closer tabs on their only living relatives.

He looked contemplatively at Rosalie who was busily trying to chart the route they would most likely be taking on a map that Emmett had somehow procured. He was very surprised at the ease that she accepted her new human siblings as compared to the animosity she still felt for Bella. When he had privately talked to her about, she explained that it was because they were already family. They were the last living proof that a Cullen had walked the earth once upon a time. Carlisle smiled, Rosalie had stopped thinking of herself as a Hale a long time ago and firmly cemented her place as a Cullen daughter when he 'adopted' her into his little makeshift family.

Edward was brooding on the couch, his mood entirely dark ever since he prevented Jasper from attacking Bella at her birthday. Jasper had only sensed the blood with the thought of attack barely formulating in his head and Edward was on him, snarling in his rage at protecting his mate. He had forgiven his brother knowing that his control around humans was weak, but all his thoughts these days centered on the fact that Bella didn't belong in their world. She was too fragile, too easily broken.

Carlisle sat down next to Esme and tried to focus on the movie playing on the television, no matter what happened Buffy and Dawn were coming to Forks, things were set in motion and no matter how much he would have liked- there was very little he could do to change the course of events to come.

* * *

Charlie knocked on Bella's door again, hearing her muffled sobs his heart broke again as he thought about how much he would love to punch that little Edward kid.

"Bella you need to eat," he called out to her. His shy, closed nature would never permit him to talk about how worried he was, about how much he had come to love his daughter living with him. So he spoke about the safest and most practical concern he could, his daughter's need for sustenance. After coming back from the Cullens Bella spent three days locked in her room, barely eating the diner bought food Charlie would bring to her door. He knew that his cooking was garbage, so rather than make the situation worse by feeding his daughter barely edible burned eggs- Charlie Swan came by the Forks diner at three every day, picking up his day's order and carrying it home to feed his broken hearted daughter.

"Bella please…" he called out softly, something in his voice must have gone through and the door opened. Eyes red and puffy, hair limp against her shoulders- his beautiful little girl stood there, pitiful, broken and sad.

Involuntarily his arm came to snake her into a hug that he wouldn't have tried under different circumstances. Thankfully she squeezed as tight as she could into him, almost trying to burrow into her dad's embrace.

As they moved into her room, still hugging, he could see the signs of Bella's mood everywhere. Clothes strewn around, a broken vase lying on the floor. He sat his daughter down on her bed and put the bag of food beside her. He bent down and using a pan carefully picked up the shards of the vase, so that Bella wouldn't hurt herself.

He sat down next to her on the bed.

"How're you doing?"

Bella didn't say anything at first, just continued listlessly chewing on a French fry.  
"He still hasn't called," her voice was soft, hoarse with crying.

Charlie sighed. "Have you tried calling him?"

"Yeah, he's not picking up" that Edward kid was definitely dead the next time Charlie Swan would come across him.

He ran his fingers through his daughter's hair, softly stroking the auburn tresses he asked her "What happened on your birthday?"

Bella shook her head "I don't want to talk about it."

Charlie frowned as a thought occurred to him, in a voice barely controlled with anger he asked "Did he hurt you?"

Bella jumped up, crossing her arms across her chest in a subconsciously defensive gesture. "God no dad! We just had a fight…"

Charlie looked at his daughter carefully, he knew that she wasn't telling the truth but he couldn't really press further.

"Alright. Listen Bells, I have to go pick up the new guidance counselor for the school. She's coming into town today and I need to show her the house, the Realtor sick- so I have to be the town's welcome wagon." It was a testament to his nature that Charlie thought nothing about filling in for the town's only Realtor, it was so rare that newcomers came into Forks that he thought the introduction to the sheriff right off the bat would be a good welcome.

"Do you want to come with?" his eyes held hope that she would accept the offer, maybe come out of her room and spend time with her dad.

Bella chewed her lip and then slowly nodded. "Yeah let me just change quickly, and I'll meet you downstairs."

His heart jumped in joy as he smiled eagerly, "alright, just don't take too long. They've been driving from California apparently."

"What kind of crazy Californians would move to a town where it's sunny only a couple of weeks out of the year?" Bella asked moving to pick out a clean sweatshirt from her closet.

Charlie laughed, thankful that his daughter was asking such an inane question.  
"The kind you're going to meet."

* * *

And in the woods outside her house, Jacob Black stood looking at her window. He saw Charlie hug her and the rage that was threatening to choke him these last couple of days went down a notch. He hated the vampires with a passion, he hated seeing the girl he loved so hurt. A soft growl escaped his chest as he moved further into the woods, running to let out the excess of adrenaline in his system.

**3. Welcome to town 2**

Disclaimers on ch.1

By the way, the music Dawn's playing when Bella and Charlie pull up to the diner is "Pistolero" by the Juno Reactor. Just try to imagine the following scene with this music playing loudly from a red convertible- .com/watch?v=VSNz5HUU9B8

Bella sat on the passenger side of her dad's police car as they pulled up to the diner where they were supposed to meet the Summers sisters. A bright red convertible sat there, what sounded like Spanish guitar interspersed with house music was blaring out of the speakers. As Bella hopped out of the car she could see a long jean clad leg bopping in time with the music, the owner of said leg was sitting too far in the car for her to see who it was- the younger sister or the guidance counselor. Bella supposed that like , the new counselor would either be a grandmotherly old lady or a forty something married woman with no time to spare for her students. Neither Forks nor Phoenix had good high school counselors and so Bella really didn't have any hope that this one would turn out to be different. The music turned off and the owner of the jean clad leg stood out of the car, all long limbed grace that made Bella feel more self conscious than ever. Taller than her by a good four, five inches the girl looked to be about her age. Long, dark chestnut hair fell in waves down her back and a pair of hipster sunglasses were perched on her head. A corset style tank top showcased the girl's cleavage, leaving Bella painfully aware of the lack of hers. Based on initial appearances, the new girl was definitely not somebody that Bella would be friends with. Bright blue eyes focused on Charlie and her and a surprisingly warm grin lit up the girl's face.

"Hey, you must be Sheriff Swan" she grinned at Charlie and shook his hand.  
Turning around to Bella she gripped her hand and winked "this must be Bella right? And I thought my name was a little strange, I mean Dawn- come on? Who names their kid that besides hippies and artists? No offence by the way." She laughed and then snorted "Don't mind me, my sense of humour is a little screwed so I find the weirdest things to be funny."  
Bella laughed weakly feeling a tad overwhelmed from the girl's enthusiasm.

The diner door swung open as a small girl emerged, carrying two large to go cups and a bag full of what was probably the town's famous burgers. The girl came closer and Bella could see that she was actually a young woman, it was just her size that made her look younger than she was. Long blonde hair was pulled into a high bun, sunglasses sat perched on her head holding her bangs in place. Hazel green eyes looked a little wary as the woman came closer to them, but relaxed as soon as they witnessed Dawn laughing at something that Charlie said. Wearing a red leather jacket and a pair of black tight jeans, the woman didn't look old enough to work in a high school.

"Hey Buff, check it out- I met the sheriff!" Dawn bounced a little as she pointed at Charlie, a sweep of her overexcited arm almost poking out Bella's eye. "Oh shit, I'm sorry," she quickly tried to ascertain that Bella wasn't hurt, "oh God, sorry for swearing." Dawn promptly turned pink and shook her head with exasperation at her very own version of Willow babble. And there it was, yet another reminder that of the fact that the Scoobies were no longer with them. Dawn consciously took her mind off them as Buffy began scolding her.

"Dawn, be careful. You could've put Bella's eye out," she smiled as she handed her sister the cup. "Here's some green tea to calm you down, I really shouldn't have let you get this caffeinated."

"Buffyy- I'm eighteen years old, chances are there are worse things for me to be addicted to. Especially in this day and age," Dawn huffed.

Buffy smiled indulgently "humor your overprotective sister and don't put thoughts into my head. I already worry about you and too much coffee, I don't need to start worrying about you on drugs."

She turned to their gaping welcoming committee. Neither Bella or her dad had expected the new guidance counselor to be so young or so beautiful. "Hi, I'm Buffy Summers and I'm guessing my little sister's already introduced herself" she shook both Charlie and Bella's hands.

"How'd you know my name?" Bella asked, the very attractive sisters made her feel awkward and gawky and she felt like the first time she had laid eyes on the gorgeous family of vampires.

"We asked ahead who'd be meeting us, and the Realtor told us that the Police Chief had a daughter named Bella," Dawn grinned. "Ipso facto you're Bella."

"Where are your things?" Charlie asked, steering the conversation in the needed direction.

"Buffy here is an amateur racecar driver, we got here ahead of schedule and parked the Uhaul by the house." Dawn grinned as her sister gave her a glare.

"We're both a little wired so we thought that we'd try to take in the town before heading home to start unpacking," Buffy opened her car door and leaned on it. "Do you mind showing us around? Or do you have somewhere to be?"

Charlie smiled as he glanced down to gauge Bella's reaction. "What do you think Bells? Do you have to get back yet?"

Bella started at being put on the spot, her fear of attention climbing its way to the surface as she panicked at having to answer people she didn't know all that well.

Dawn slapped her hands on her hips as she winked at Bella, "come on… Just a little tour, and I promise not to annoy you too much with my overcaffeinated babbling. You can tell me what the young, hip people do for fun here. Not like Buffy wants to know," she waited for Bella's answer.

Buffy called out in mock indignation "hey! I'm young, I'm hip!"

Inadvertently Bella laughed, surprised by the first sound of joy to escape her lips in three days. She nodded her head in agreement. The two sisters somehow made her feel better, their playful natures were a a welcome contrast to the darkness enveloping her world currently. She decided to take a chance, and maybe make a new friend.

Buffy grinned a warm smile at Bella, having sensed the girl's innate reserve she decided to try to bring Bella out of her shell. She could still see evidence of a long hard cry on Bella's face, eyes filled with popped blood vessels and a ponytail signaling that Bella didn't have the desire to do anything about her hair. All signs showing a great deal of distress, and Buffy's chosen calling demanded that she try to cheer up the shy girl. She knew that Dawnie would do everything she could to put a smile on Bella's face, her need to make people happy came straight from their mother.

She called out to Charlie, "we saw the town hall a little while away. How about we meet you there and we can take a walk around the town centre, and you show us what's cool around here."

Charlie smiled and nodded "Alright," it was beginning to look like Dawn would be a good influence on Bella. Hopefully a little of the girl's enthusiasm would rub off on his daughter.

Dawn crowed in delight "Well alright then! Let's get this show on the road, we're going to paint the town red!"

Her sister laughed as she got in the driver's seat, both Dawn and Buffy quickly shut their doors as the music started up again. The engine revved as the car quickly pulled out of the parking lot, tires squealed as the convertible flew out onto the road.

Bella shook her head in amusement, Buffy the racecar driver indeed. Looking up at her dad's smile she asked him "So what do you think of the town's newest additions?"

"Don't know yet," her dad was as talkative as ever. He opened the driver's door and sat down.

Bella slowly walked to her side of the car.

"I like them," she very quietly whispered to herself, the small smile still playing on her lips as her dad pulled out after the long gone Summers sisters.

**4. Friends**

Disclaimers in Ch.1

Enjoy and review!

Their convertible was flying the curves of the town, the road whipping past them in a blur of shocked faces and upturned leaves. Dawn whooped as Buffy laughed and took another turn, the car used to her maneuvering followed her body's commands as they shocked yet another bystander. Finally she spotted the Town Hall, and with a great whoop of joy and a faintly protesting squeal of the tires they managed to park the car without injuring any bystanders. Dawn climbed out and stretched her body, bouncing a little on the balls of her feet with adrenaline.

"Buff, that was awesome!"

Her sister shook her head ruefully, "I think that was a mistake. I'm supposed to be making a good impression on the townspeople instead of joyriding with my underage sister."

"Oh pish posh, at least this will be an advance warning for them to jump out of the way when they see the car coming," Dawn grinned and then suddenly a random thought struck her.  
"Is that why the car's bright red? Cause you want people to be warned ahead of time?"

Buffy winked at her, "That's a secret you'll never learn my young padawan."

At that moment the Swans pulled up next to their car, Bella hopped out and went their way. Already a little more comfortable with the sisters than initially, she smiled and asked them "What were you guys doing? I think half the people in the square are looking at you."

Dawn grinned and leaned with one elbow on Bella's shoulder, due to their height difference it was actually a pretty comfy position.  
"Yoda here has been teaching me all about scaring tactics and how apparently our car exists for the sole purpose of warning people to avoid us."

Buffy stuck her tongue out at her sister as Bella laughed.

Charlie came up to them, his face alight at the smile his daughter was wearing.  
"So where do you ladies feel like going first?"

Buffy smiled at him "Show us whatever you think we should see. We're pretty enthusiastic people, plus Dawn's an optimist- you show her a puddle, and she'll think it's a pretty lake."

Dawn grinned and nodded her head "Yup, we're pretty easy to please. Lead on Sheriff," she held out her arm to Bella who entwined it with her own and so skinny elbows touching they began walking, Dawn never stopping with her pithy commentary and Bella occasionally emitting a soft laugh that warmed her father's heart they began their scenic tour of Forks, Washington.

Alice's head snapped up as she was hit with a vision. She gasped as a beautific smile lit her features "They're here. Oh they're beautiful…"

Carlisle grasped Esme's hand as she shook with excitement, finally the Summers girls had come to Forks. They had been worrying the whole afternoon, a little shocked that Alice couldn't get a read on their descendants and now, after hours of waiting they were finally getting a glimpse.

Alice's unseeing eyes followed the vision in her head, Jasper was holding her hand keeping her grounded as she followed the sisters' antics with delight, her second sight allowing her to witness everything about them.

"They're really funny, young. Buffy drives like Edward, and Dawn's a bit like Emmett- very enthusiastic about everything."

The whole family relaxed at her words and even Edward broke out a rare smile at the thought that a living 'relative' had a characteristic of his. Emmett grinned widely, he had missed his little sister terribly, she was so like him in temperament. Maybe this Dawn would remind him of her, maybe she'd even become a friend.

Alice gasped as her sight returned to normal. "We have to go to town, now."

"What? Why?" Rosalie asked jumping up, she would never say it out loud but she was looking forward to hearing more about these relatives of theirs.

Alice's eyes twinkled as she replied "We have to, just trust me."

Rosalie's eyes narrowed as she glared at her sister "Do I at least have time to change?"

Alice shook her head "Rose you look beautiful, we need to go *now*."

The blonde huffed a little as she jumped up from her resting place with Emmett, pulling her mate up by his hand but they all knew that it was just for show. That Rosalie Hale was just as excited as the rest of them.

As Esme pulled Carlisle out the door, chattering happily about the girls and what they were like, Edward moved to follow them out of the house his eyes heavy with longing at the sight of his siblings with their respective mates. Alice gently grasped his elbow as she led him away from the others.

"Alice?" she was mentally reciting the phonetic alphabet and Edward couldn't get to her thoughts as much as he might have liked to.

"Edward, you're my brother and I love you," her eyes were downcast as she said this. "But you probably shouldn't go."

"Why?" he asked, the golden yellow of his own turning a little darker in his confusion. What was going on?

Alice's pixie features were sad as she met his gaze, "We're going to meet them in town, Dawn needs to see us."

Edward frowned, why wouldn't she want him to meet their relatives?

Alice nervously licked her lips, "Bella's with them. She's happy."

He pulled his arm out of her grip in a jerking movement, shock coloring his features.

Almost like from nowhere, Jasper blurred to his wife's side, calm features studying Edward for any signs of distress that might turn physical.

Alice sighed as she put a restraining arm on Jasper. "Stop Jaz," she turned to her brother "she's smiling and laughing. Please don't ruin this day for her, it'll be hard enough to see us without you being there." Her voice dropped an octave as she entreated "She deserves all the happiness she can get Edward."

He looked at her deeply as she opened her thoughts to him, he could see the vision as she saw it, his beautiful Bella laughing as she walked with a tall dark-haired girl and her father ahead of them. His heart dropped as he realized that he wouldn't be going with his family, he didn't want to bring any more hurt to her than he already had. He didn't know if he would be breaking up with her, but the break he needed to take to think about their relationship was already costing him too much. He nodded his agreement to Alice as he walked calmly to the open windows, jumping out to the nearest branch he headed for the forest tops. He would be calmer away from the house, where he could still catch the faintest trace of her scent and where his heart had no choice but to wallow in the pain of her absence.

* * *

"Are they flirting?" Dawn's shocked whisper drew Bella out of her momentary funk. They both regarded the picture in front of them, small blonde Buffy was grinning as she recounted a story to Charlie- it was almost comical how different they looked. She was all air and bounce, a butterfly of enthusiasm to Charlie's solid, mustachioed stoicism.

Bella scrunched her nose at the ickiness of the thought but then looked closer at her dad. Was that a smile she could see forming under the 'stache? He was walking straighter, the perpetual slouch almost gone from his shoulders as he listened to Dawn's older sister. He seemed almost younger as his limbs flowed loosely with movement, none of his usual pinched closed-off demeanor was coming through. Whatever was happening to him, Bella decided that she liked it. Just like Renee, Charlie deserved to be happy.

She looked at her new friend, and yes she could definitely count Dawn as being in the friend category. The tall brunette's eyes were narrowed in thought as she regarded her sister's back, carefully sipping her green tea as the numerous bracelets on her arm jingled with the movement.

Bella decided to break the silence. "So what's up with the collection?" she pointed out the rows and rows of leather and metal on Dawn's arm.

Dawn turned to look at her, deciding to put away the perpetual mystery of Buffy's love life for later. "Some of them are protection amulets, some are just bracelets."

Bella nodded, she knew that some people really believed in that sort of thing. "Is there a special significance to the arm you wear the bracelets on?"

Dawn cocked an eyebrow as she regarded her, and just as Bella was about to move on to an another topic she answered. "When I was younger, I used to cut myself. Besides protecting me, the bracelets do a pretty good job of covering up the scary psycho part of my past."

"Oh…" what could Bella really say to something like that? Obviously Dawn had decided to trust her with something important; something that not a lot of people would have shared with somebody they met a couple of hours back. So she moved closer to the brunette and gave her a friendly bump with her hip.

"We're all a little psycho inside," she told her with a small smile.

Dawn's face lit up at the new hurdle their fledgling friendship had just overcome. It was probably the infamous Summers instinct, but she could feel that Bella was somebody she would definitely like in the long run. The girl's vulnerability called to Dawn's protective tendencies and her quiet, shy demeanor definitely meant that Dawn would be the loud one in the friendship. She felt rather than knew that Bella would be a loyal friend, sticking by her crazy escapades and sharing troubled times together.  
So she entwined their arms again as they followed their most likely flirting elders.

"What's going on with you?" she asked her.

Bella started at her question and just as she was about to give the standard denial line, she thought about how Dawn had really opened up to her and for the first time in her life- Bella Swan decided to really trust a girl.

"I had a fight with my boyfriend," deciding to skip over the vampire parts, Bella just imparted the gist of the matter.

Dawn frowned "What happened?"

"He and his family… They uh, they lead a pretty alternative lifestyle. He thinks that I could get hurt and that I don't belong with them," vampirism was as alternative as they came right?

Bella continued "But here's the thing, I know everything that they do. And I'm not scared, I went into this relationship with my eyes open. And now that we've run into some problems, he's talking about breaking up for my own good."

Dawn stopped her, "They're not hurting you right?"

Bella shook her head "No, I got hurt by accident. A stupid, clumsy accident that was my own fault."

They started walking again; thankfully Buffy and Charlie were too busy talking to notice them though Bella did see the small blonde shoot her a worried glance. But she was too far away to hear them right?

Dawn cleared her throat, "If you're dating, then he shouldn't be trying to make decisions for the both of you by himself. A relationship should be an equal partnership, it's not one person making the decisions by himself."

Bella sighed, deep inside she knew that Edward was very wrong to try to make life changing decisions for them both by himself. There were moments where her anger at his bullheadedness made her want to slap him silly, but Bella Swan was a quiet, shy girl who would never do something like that.

They turned the corner as they saw Buffy drag Charlie into a store, Bella noticed that her dad didn't protest much.

They sat on the bench outside the store, Bella slouching forward as usual, auburn ponytail swinging in the gentle wind. Dawn was loose limbed as she looked at the world in front of her with a fiery defiance, one arm slung on the back of the bench and long legs crossed at the knee.

"Hey Bells," she called. Bella smiled, Dawn had taken to using her dad's nickname for her and she realized that she didn't really mind.

"Yeah?"

"Whatever happens, you know that I'm here for you right?"

Bella turned back to her with a warm smile, "I know… Wanna hear something funny?"

Dawn grinned "Always."

"I think that you're the first real friend I've made in a long while," Bella coughed, a little embarrassed at confessing her anti-social tendencies. Sure she was friendly with Alice, but that was only because she was dating Edward. Outside the Cullens Bella didn't really have any friends. Jacob was a constant heartache, once upon a time they were best friends and now that he had developed feelings for her- Bella didn't really feel right continuing to be as close as they used to be.

Dawn gave her a playful punch "Aww, that's okay. My best friend's my sister, we can be losers together."

Bella laughed at her friend's antics and the moment was shattered as she caught a beautiful, ethereally pale face in the reflection of the shop. She whipped her head around and sure enough there they were, the Cullens in all their glory going into the music store across the street from where Bella and Dawn were sitting. Jasper and Alice, Rose and Emmett and Carlisle leading them all with a laughing Esme by his side. Bella quickly tried to ascertain whether Edward was with him, but try as she might she didn't see her wayward boyfriend with his family.

"Holy shit…" Dawn's whisper of incredulity brought Bella back to reality, the Cullens had by that time already entered the shop.

She sighed, knowing that her friend was probably amazed at the otherworldly beauty of the family just like everyone else in town.

"That's Edward's family, he's not with them" she tried to explain.

Dawn's wide blue eyes turned to Bella, "I hope you're not dating a vampire."

Bella gaped, opening and closing her mouth like a stranded fish out of water. "Umm…" she tried to stall for time. What was she supposed to reply to something like that?

**5. First day**

See disclaimers in Ch.1

Thank you for the love!

Now for the clarifications:

Dawn's turned eighteen in this story, we'll make her an August baby- Dawnie's a Leo. The story takes place about a week after Bella's eighteenth' birthday, (Bella's a Virgo for those horoscope freaks like me). Jasper never got the chance to attack her as Edward had him down for the count as soon as he smelled Bella's blood. Edward hasn't broken up with Bella yet, he's still mulling it over, giving Angel a run for his money as King of Broody Vampires.

Jacob's eighteen here too. I know that he turns into a werewolf after Edward leaves, but for the sake of the story- he's already turned. He's got the hunky, hunky wolfiness going for him now.

Alright now on to the story. Reviews= Love and more story ;)

"Um…."

Dawn narrowed her eyes at her friend, "Bella don't you dare lie to me about this."

A little shakily, Bella nodded her head. It wasn't like Dawn didn't already realize that the Cullens were vampires, plus Bella figured that she'd be able to tell her about their vegetarian status herself. Therefore she was a little shocked when her friend, who she expected to start asking her questions just sat back on the bench and crossed her arms with a long suffering sigh.

Bella chanced a look at the brunette, Dawn had closed her eyes and tilted her head back in deep thought. Raising an eyebrow at her friend's lack of reaction Bella reached out and touched Dawn's elbow, "hey, you okay?"

Dawn opened one baleful eye, "Oh yeah. I'm freakin peachy keen. I move to a new town, make friends with a cool chick, do the whole bonding thing- only to realize that she's dating a motherfreaking vampire!"

Her voice rose in pitch and she pinched her nose in exasperation, "okay, okay, okay…" she muttered to herself rubbing her temples in an effort to calm down.

Turning to Bella again, Dawn decided to continue. "So I guess they don't eat humans right?"

A flabbergasted Bella could only shake her head.

A thoughtful look on her features, Dawn stared off into the distance "Vegetarian vampires, alright… We can deal with that, we've already dealt with that…"

A bit calmer by the end of her rant, she turned to Bella and clapped her hands in a decision- "Well okay, this is definitely unexpected but not new. We hoped to get away from the heebie jeebies, but I guess it's just our luck that we stumble onto vamps everywhere we go. Now, promise me that they're not dangerous," she turned to Bella and asked her in a serious tone.

Dutifully Bella replied "they're not dangerous, I promise."

"Kay then, we'll deal." Dawn grinned. "Oh, I cannot wait for Buffy's reaction about this!" She looked almost gleeful as she glanced at the shop where an excited Buffy's voice could be heard through the windows.

Bella took Dawn's hand, "Dawnie, I don't know how you know about vampires, but please don't tell Buffy yet."

Dawn looked at her carefully "Why not?"

Bella took a deep breath, trying to explain why she was still protecting the Cullens no matter how much Edward might have hurt her. "They're good people Dawn, even if a little unusual. I know that they're going to want to meet you, especially if you already know about vampires. Just…" she bit her lips nervous "just, let me talk to them first okay?"

Dawn took a deep breath, maybe she was going to really regret this but she decided to take a chance on her new friend. Buffy would understand the need to protect your friends, but either way- Dawn was giving Bella a deadline to talk to the vamps, and after that she and Buffy were coming to see them on their own.

"Alright Bells, but it's only cause I trust you. I'm giving you three days to make sure they're ready for us, and after that I'm talking to Buffy myself."

Bella squeezed her hand in gratitude "Thanks Dawnie."

Dawn smiled her usual big grin "Yeah yeah, Dawnie's the shizzle until she gets pummeled to death by her sister."

Bella laughed as said sister chose that moment to reappear from the store, looking particularly harmless she was almost bouncing with excitement as she hugged Dawn.

"Oh my god, guess what? This store has the most adorable decorations you could find in it! I've already bought the curtains for my room and the living room, some kitchenware and a few necessities," Buffy grinned as she listed her new purchases.

Dawn hugged her sister with a smile and asked the pertinent question, seeing as how Buffy was by herself.  
"That's great Buff, but uh… Where's Bella's dad?"

"Oh, Charlie's coming. He's trying to do the gentleman thing, so he's carrying the bags to the car," Buffy laughed with real mirth.

Just then, the shop door opened again and at first Bella thought that the bundle of shopping bags was floating on air. There were so many of them, and a grunt of effort could be heard as they were squeezed through the door.

"Oh my god Buffy! This is what you call essentials?" Dawn smacked her sister on the arm as she moved to help Charlie who was practically buried under the new purchases.

Her sister gave an unrepentant shrug "Hey, you know my shopping habits," and moved to help Charlie and Dawn, taking some of the bags off them.

"I'm good, I can carry everything," Charlie's voice was a little muffled by the bags.

Bella laughed "Dad, I can't even hear you behind the bags," she took some of the bags too as they headed back to the cars.

Inside the music store, Alice smiled to herself as another vision hit her. This one had Dawn arguing with a boy, the heat in both of their eyes signaling a change in their relationship that would affect the Cullens, the Swans and the Summers. She flipped through the CD rack idly wondering whether a Linkin Park cd was worth twenty bucks.

Carlisle moved to her, followed by Esme.  
"I hope that you had a good reason for us coming into town," he asked her gently.

Alice's tinkling laugh echoed within the half empty store "Dawn needed to see us." She impulsively gave her adopted dad a bone crushing hug, "Oh Carlisle, their coming means so much more than you think. They're really going to change things around here," she laughed again as she glided towards the exit, the everpresent Jasper following his mate silently.

Esme took Carlisle's hand as they regarded their children.

"There's a saying that Nurse Ratchett usually says whenever talking about her kids, I never thought about it but she was right," he murmured to his wife.

She raised her head to meet his eyes "what's the saying?"

"The bigger the children, the bigger the challenges."

Esme laughed as she snuggled to his side, "They're good kids Carlisle, just a little more special than others."

He smiled as he saw the gently bickering Rosalie and Emmett fight over which dvds to pick for family movie night.

"You're right about that."

Monday morning Buffy smiled as she drove the car through the town to the high school, a half asleep Dawn in the passenger seat sat clutching a thermos filled with the black goodness known as coffee. Buffy turned the wheel as her thoughts turned to the past weekend, they had spent it decorating the new house, unpacking their belongings and joking around in an atmosphere of joyful anticipation of their new life.

After leaving the store the Swans made sure that they arrived at their house safely and helped them carry the bags inside. Before they left Bella had been the one to surprise Buffy, she initiated goodbye hugs smiling as she moved to sit beside her dad.  
Buffy herself had given a little wave to Charlie who smiled and nodded at her, Dawn gave a loud wolf whistle as they pulled away making Buffy blush.  
She then spent the next ten minutes chasing her shrieking and laughing sister around their house as they completely ruined their neighbors' first impressions of them.

On Saturday, an orange truck pulled up by their house, Bella walking up to their front steps in a clean green polo shirt and jeans, her bright auburn hair swaying in the breeze as her face glowed with health, rang the bell. A paint splattered Dawn pulled her into the house, laughing as she commandeering Bella's help at painting her room.

They spent the whole day painting Dawn and Buffy's rooms, unpacking the basics of the house and baking cookies. Well alright, it was more like Bella was baking and Dawn tried to learn. Buffy just stayed out of their way, coming downstairs to model her 'first day of school' outfits, both girls giving their opinions on the outfit that made Buffy look the most professional. After walking Bella home, Buffy did a quick patrol of Forks- nothing outright evil jumped at her and satisfied she went home.

On Sunday, Dawn and Buffy just stayed inside- getting ready for Forks High School, unpacking their closets and being silly. Sunday's patrol was just as uneventful as Saturday's, a Brachen family were told about her presence and were asked to come to her with any problems they might have.

A honk brought Buffy back to reality, the driver of the car behind her was getting impatient as he signaled for her to move. Buffy smiled widely as she pulled away from the now green light, Dawn snorted as she woke up from her light doze, a light drool strand hanging from the side of her mouth.

Buffy wrinkled her nose "Oh now that's real attractive right there Dawnie."

Dawn glared at her sister "Don't make me smack you. When'd you become a morning person anyway?"

Buffy winked at her "It's the nine to five lifestyle kiddo, it either makes you into a morning person or it kills you."

Dawn smiled slightly as she huddled deeper into her dark grey hoodie with scull motifs printed everywhere on her back.

"Boy they weren't kidding when they said that Forks doesn't get much sunshine," the sleep deprived brunette muttered as she gazed out the window. The steady, gray drizzle fell steadily, making a blurry curtain between their car and the real world.

"Nope, no more sunshine for us" Buffy chirped.

Dawn gave her the evil eye.

A dark building rose before them, the sign proclaiming it to be Forks High School. Dawn shook her head at the dreariness of the school.  
"Yeah, they're really all about the cheerfulness here, aren't they?"

Buffy laughed as she drove past the various groups of students trudging their way to class. Dawn spotted Bella standing beside her orange truck, looking for somebody.  
"Hey let me out here, I see Bella" she asked her sister grabbing her backpack from the back.

"Kay Dawnie, make sure to be careful. Here's your schedule, and the locker combo" Buffy gave her two pieces of paper. The principal emailed Dawn her schedule ahead of time, a part of the condition for them to come to Forks had been that Dawn concentrate mainly on arts subjects, so Dawn had spent around two weeks picking out the subjects she would need for her degree in Washington U.

She took the papers and just as she was jumping out of the car Buffy called out after her "Any problems and make sure to call my cellphone, this is why you have yours. And try to make a good impression," she grinned at her sister.

Dawn gave her two thumbs up "I always make a good impression," she shooed her away with one hand, "now go. You're cramping my style."

Buffy laughed as she pulled away from the girls, her car swerved into the faculty parking lot as she sung to the radio.

She turned off the ignition, and pulling her briefcase out she briefly checked her makeup in the mirror. Everything looked good, so she set the car alarm and slamming the door on her baby she headed off to the administration office.

Buffy looked at the clock above her desk, it was almost lunchtime and she was really looking forward to eating. First day jitters had prevented her from eating her usual breakfast and now she was starving. No matter what happened in her life, she was still a slayer and she still had the metabolism of one.

Principal Green walked past her office, giving her a thumbs up through the glass, Buffy gave him a wave of acknowledgment. It had come as a real shock to the administration that the new guidance counselor was a young, pretty blonde woman. When Buffy had come in to introduce herself, it took a full five minutes for Green to stop stuttering and fully welcome her to the administration. Unfortunately the school secretary had decided that she didn't like the new faculty member and every time Buffy had to go for a new student file in the communal filing cabinet, Mrs. Cope trailed after her with the meanest look that Buffy had ever seen on a living person.

The intercom buzzed on her desk, Mrs. Cope's snide voice rang through Buffy's office as she asked "Miss Summers, there's a last minute addition to your appointments. Do you want to see her before lunch or afterward?"

Buffy sighed, it figured that the old witch would try to keep Buffy away from food for as long as she could. She decided not to give her any ammunition as she replied sweetly "Send her in , I'm not that hungry anyway."

She straightened her desk, pencils on the right, papers on the left. No need for the students to see her habitual messiness. A soft knock sounded on her door, she called out "Come in!" and leaned back on her chair, a warm smile ready for the student who wanted to see a guidance counselor.

A dark haired girl came in, so tiny and small boned that Buffy felt tall standing up to shake her hand. And that was a first in her life. From her average sized parents, to her freakishly tall sister and gigantic ex-boyfriends- Buffy Summers never felt tall standing next to someone.

'Oh shit,' the girl's handshake was firm but Buffy could feel the coldness of her skin. She frowned briefly, maybe the girl was just cold and it was nothing supernatural.

Looking into the girl's eyes, Buffy quickly retracted her previous statement and changed her opinion. This was definitely supernatural, with eyes like that there was no way in hell that the girl was human.

Buffy glanced at folder labeled 'Alice Cullen' and smiled warmly at the girl.

"I know that you're aware of what I am," the girl's musical voice sounded, destroying Buffy's opportunity to open the conversation with a cool quip.

"Yeah, so why does a vampire want to see a guidance counselor?" Buffy raised an eyebrow, one hand inconspicuously fingering the stake taped to the underside of her table.

Alice shook her head, "I'm not doing this right" she raised her eyes to meet Buffy's stern gaze, "we're different from the vampires you know."

"Oh yeah? How's that?" Buffy kept her voice carefully neutral.

"We don't eat humans," Alice replied.

Buffy scoffed "I know vampires that don't drink human blood."

Alice's eyed widened with hurt at her scornful rebuttal, "Oh… I don't think I can do this properly."

"Do what?" Buffy asked her, leaning forward in her chair, elbows raised she steepled her hands.

Alice stood up, "I think Carlisle would be better for this," she moved towards the door.

"Wait!" Buffy ground out before the vampire could turn the knob.

"What did you want?"

Alice turned back to her, "My family, we uh… We're special, and my dad wanted to talk to you."

"Carlisle's your dad?" Buffy asked her, trying to decipher what this girl wanted.

"Yeah, Carlisle's my adopted dad," Alice smiled with obvious fondness.

The pixie like girl moved towards Buffy, the slayer stood still even as she eyed the preternaturally fast vampire standing way too close to her. With the activation of the Sunnydale potentials, her strength and reflexes had grown to almost twice their previous levels. She knew that if it came down to a fight, she could take down the smaller girl.

Alice picked up a pen and Buffy's bright pink notepad, she raised a curious eyebrow at her choice of stationery colors.  
Buffy gave a defensive shrug of her shoulders, it wasn't her fault that she got bored easily. Alice smiled as she wrote something down in a beautiful cursive. Putting the pen and paper down, she turned to leave.

"Stop. How long have you been in this school?"

Alice's dark head didn't turn to face Buffy as she answered "Two years. And no, I've never fed on anybody."

She motioned to the notepad with an elegant sweep of her hand "Look that name up, I know you have records of previous watchers. If you want to know more, call the number- it's my cell phone. You don't have to talk to anybody else until you're ready."

She turned the doorknob and as she put her foot out the door, Buffy's low voice reached her vampiric hearing.

"If you hurt anybody, you know that I'll be coming after you right?"

Just as softly, Alice answered her "Yeah I know…" Turning her head at the last second before she completely closed the door behind her she called out to a still standing Buffy, "Nobody else knows that you're the slayer, and I won't tell them until you're ready."

A surprised Buffy looked at the rapidly leaving back of the small girl, she turned her head to look at her notepad. In an envy enducing handwriting, Alice had written down 'Carlisle Cullen 1643-1666. Born and died in London, England.' Right below the name she had written her name down, along with her cell phone number and a smiley face. Buffy chuckled, she had drawn fangs dripping with blood on the smiling symbol.

**6. Lunch**

See Disclaimers on Ch.1

11:30 a.m.

Dawn leaned forward on her desk, she leaned backwards on her chair. Dawn pretty much just started rocking back and forth on the chair in the faint hopes that maybe she'd fall down and get a concussion, which would be a totally great excuse to get out of class earlier and not die of boredom.

Bella kicked the back of her chair and hissed "Stop it!"

The Spanish teacher, gave them both a dirty look, Dawn stopped her movements. No need to antagonize the teachers on the first day.

Looking around the class, she began to catalogue the students she had already met. There was Mikey, the dude following around Bella like a lovesick puppy. Eric, the Chinese student newspaper geek- he had an overflow of enthusiasm that was kind of annoying. And of course, there was Jessica and her little minion- Angela. Naively Bella introduced them as friends, but the looks they gave definitely made Dawn sit up and take notice of the two girls.

9 a.m.

Walking into the school, it was Jessica and Eric they first met, and the sight of a laughing Bella definitely made them stop in their tracks.

"Hey Swan, you're in a good mood today" Eric's voice sounded snide and overtly curious.

Bella though didn't notice or maybe she had just gotten used to it so she smiled and nodded at Dawn "Guys, this is my friend Dawn- she's going to be going to school with us." She pointed out Jessica "This is Jess, she'll be in your art history class", and the widely grinning Eric introduced himself, gripping Dawn's hand with his own clammy one he declared "my my, Bella. Here I thought that you'd be the hottest thing to come to this school, but Dawn is a vision of loveliness…" Dawn smiled, barely managing to keep the 'Yuck' silent as she ripped her hand out of his sleazy paw.

Jessica sidled up to them "Bella, you've been making friends outside of the Cullens I see…"

The smile rapidly fell off her friend's face so Dawn decided to take charge of the situation "Yeah, we're like Roger and Ebert. Close," she hugged Bella to her with one arm, gave a wiggle of her fingers to Jessica and began dragging Bella away from the mutely staring group.

She let go of her once they got away from the assholes, but then she sighed and decided to apologize.  
"Listen Bells, I'm sorry about being a bitch back there. But people like them just get on my last nerve", Dawn scratched her elbow looking at her suddenly saddened friend.

Bella sighed and with her eyes downcast she shrugged "It's fine, it's just every time I think I'm over trying to be friends with them…" she trailed off.

Quickly deciding to change the subject, Dawn dropped her backpack on the ground beside their lockers. Thankfully Buffy talked to principal Green and he had decided to give them adjoining lockers, he actually smiled as he commended Bella on making new friends. Dawn realized that Bella wasn't really kidding when she said that she didn't have a lot of friends.

Rooting around in her backpack Dawn came across what she had been looking for, an advertisement for a boutique opening in Seattle next weekend.  
"Hey Bells, there's a pretty cool shop opening in Seattle. Come with me, I know Buffy's going to want to go shopping- it'll be fun." Dawn looked up from her crouching position.

Bella was standing there silently with such longing on her face that Dawn was surprised her heart wasn't jumping out of her chest right there in the hallway. She followed Bella's gaze to a very pretty, extremely pale guy standing across the hall from them. He had the sort of messy bronze hairdo that would have taken a living guy an hour in front of a mirror to accomplish. With the prettiness of these vampires, Dawn supposed that he died with his hair like that and it had stayed the same shape for the last couple of hundred years. A stray thought popped into her head, she had read somewhere that hair and nails still grew for some time after a person's death. How long did hair grow on a corpse? She eyed what looked to be Bella's honey thoughtfully, maybe she could ask him? Having died already, and with hair like that- he must be aware of the finer points of vampire haircare.

She stood up, Bella and the dude were still engaged in their stare off. None too gently she nudged her friend in his direction, "Go talk to him!"

Bella's terrified gaze met Dawn's amused one. "I can't just walk up to him like nothing's happened…" she hissed.

Dawn gave her a gentle shove in his direction " Go ask him why he's being such a boob when his stare could definitely rival Angel's during his angst fest with Buffy."

Bella stared at her with confusion and the taller brunette noticed that her friend was still not moving. Dawn decided to be rude and take matters into her own hands.

Gripping her arm she began dragging Bella towards the still creepily standing vampire all the while muttering to herself "Couldn't we do this after lunch? Noooo, we have to make with the angsty staring before its' even ten in the morning! Going to be late for my first day of class…"

Having dragged a now silent Bella up to the guy, Dawn parked herself firmly in between them.

She turned to the dude, "What's your name, oh silently staring one?"

He turned to her, eyes never leaving Bella's face. "Edward…"

Big time dejavu on the Buffy-Angel flashbacks.

Dawn decided to intervene before the silence smothered them all, shoving her hand unceremoniously at Edward she proclaimed "I'm Dawn Summers, Bella's new friend."

The surprised vampire shook her hand, the coolness of his hand not bothering Dawn now that she knew his condition. "Yes I know, your sister's the guidance counselor."

Dawn narrowed her eyes, the patented Summers 'Talk or I'll beat you to death with a shovel' glare coming through full force, "Really? That's fascinating, tell me more about how you know about me and my sister."

Edward's panicked gaze swung between the glaring relative he had already managed to alienate and his girlfriend that he was currently on a break with.

Dawn made a 'let's get to it' gesture with her hands, "I'm listening…"

At that point Bella snapped out of her lusty boyfriend induced funk and began shoving Dawn away from Edward who was still trying to come up with a good explanation for his 'foot in mouth disease'.

"We don't want to be late for classes, come on Dawn. You promised Buffy that you'd make a good impression on the teachers," said the still shoving Bella.

Dawn whirled around and glared once more at the gaping Edward for good measure.  
"Come on short stuff," she said to Bella and linking their arms they began walking forward to their first shared class. A small smile played on Dawn's face, it was kinda funny how much she was rubbing off on her shy friend. Besides, it was always fun to confuse vampires, they tended to think that they had the market on 'mystique and enigma' only to themselves, it was always great to mess with their preconceptions.

12 p.m.

*Finally*… Dawn sighed and gathered her stuff, already planning on what to devour for lunch in the cafeteria. Bella had been talking about salad bars and whatnot and all Dawn really wanted to know was whether they had meat there. Sometimes, she really thought that she had a part of Buffy's slayer constitution in her genes- the awesomely fast metabolism was both a blessing and a disguise. She tended to pile up her plate to the very top, and yet never gained any weight. Bad thing was that she got hungry very easily and half the time she daydreamed, she dreamed about food instead of hot guys like most girls her age.

She glanced at the door, Bella was already there patiently waiting for Dawn. As she passed through the multitude of desks, she was stopped by , "Miss Summers, may I suggest that you pay more attention in class next time. Seeing as how this is your first day and all, I would absolutely hate for you to fall behind," the teacher smiled and Dawn felt ashamed for fooling around earlier.

"I'm sorry , it's just first day jitters. You know how it is, new kids, new school. I'll do better I promise," Dawn tried to convey as much sincerity as she could into her eyes.

The teacher nodded her head and moved back towards her desk, slightly mollified. "See that you do. Have a good lunch with Miss Swan."

Dawn gave her a salute and bounced out the door where Bella was eyeing her with worry, "what was that all about?"

"Don't worry about me grasshopper, it's all good" Dawn grinned as they headed towards the cafeteria.

As they entered through the doors Dawn could automatically see the Cullens, they were sitting in their own group, their table apart from others. Years of living on the Hellmouth and Dawn could see the multitude of students sending covert little looks at her and Bella and back at the Cullens, she guessed that the whole of the student body had heard about Edward and Bella being on the verge of a breakup and were now salivating about the gossip worthy scene in front of them.

Dawn glanced at Bella, the auburn haired girl was tightly gripping the tray, her nerves turning her knuckles white with indecision. Leaning down, she whispered into her shorter friend's ear "Listen, we do whatever you want to. Are you ready to sit with them?"

Bella looked up at Dawn, indecision marring her features and then shook her head, the curls of her hair bouncing slightly with the vehemence of her statement.

Dawn grinned and shifted her tray, "Alrighty then, we do our own thing. I'm down with that. Hey look, there's Mikey," she pointed out a frantically waving Mike Henry. For some reason he was sitting away from Sleazy Eric as she had taken to dubbing him in her head and the Bitch twins, Jessica and Angela. Dawn gave him a wiggle of her hands back, and leaned back to tell Bella quietly "I'll meet you at his table."

"Are you sure about this?" Bella looked slightly panicked at sitting with the boy who had pursued her unstoppingly for the last year and a half.

"Meh, he's harmless. Besides, you told me that Edward gets a bit jealous of you and Mikey boy over there. We need the big brooder to hurry up and realize that he can't do without you, so a little bit of jealousy will be just the ticket" she grinned at her sneaky ways.

Bella glanced at a frowning Edward and at the practically bouncing Mike, making a decision she steeled her shoulders and made her way to his table.

"Atta girl," Dawn called after her and chose a slightly different route to join them for lunch.

Making sure to pass by the Cullens' table she slowed down and glared at Edward, leaning down at their table she whispered in his direction "I'm watching you buddy," and walked off to join a pale Bella and a practically salivating with excitement Mike.

As she walked off, she heard Rosalie snort into her water bottle "I like her, she's feisty."

Dawn's step had a little more bounce than before as she joined her new friends for lunch.

**7. Proposal**

See disclaimers on Ch.1

Buffy sat in her car, listening to soft music as a relaxing post-workday wind down. Invariably, her mind shifted to Alice Cullen and what her visit might entail for the Summers girls. She hadn't felt evil to Buffy's senses and years of fighting the worst things that hell could throw at her had honed her senses enviably. Plus there was that name, Carlisle Cullen; it was bugging her, itching at her senses like an itch that you can't scratch. She knew that she had either heard the name before or had read about it, but for the life of her she couldn't remember where.

Dawn hopped inside with her usual level of noisiness, slamming the door she huffed in annoyance as she threw her backpack to the backseat. She closed her seat belt with jerking movements and began examining her nails, not once during her entrance routine did she look at Buffy.

The older sister raised an inquiring eyebrow, "had a good day?"

"Uh huh, the usual… Sleazy boys, mean girls and yours truly navigating the halls with her new friend," Dawn still wasn't meeting her eyes, gaze intent on her black nail polish.

Inwardly, Buffy was cheering in triumph as her sister continued examining her manicure. Dawn could never lie to her directly, something about Buffy's stare being a direct inheritance from Joyce, and God knows Dawnie had never been able to lie to their mother. So the youngest Summers had a pretty clear tell, whenever hiding something she would avoid her sister's infamous gaze like a medieval peasant avoiding the Bubonic Plague.

Buffy smirked as she put the key into the ignition and began steering their way home, there were very few things that Dawn would try to hide from her: it was still too early for her to fail a class, Principal Green didn't try to talk to her about her sister's behavioral issues as she was leaving the school and the last and most likely explanation was if Dawn had found something out about the supernatural forces in Forks and for reasons unknown was keeping her findings from her sister. Combined with her sister's sudden closeness to Bella Swan and Dawn's unwavering loyalty to her few friends, Buffy figured out that Bella was asking her sister to keep a secret. Taking a stab in the rapidly lightening dark, Buffy casually remarked "So I met a vampire today at school. Turns out that there's a nest in forks, they even call themselves a family. It's all very Godfather for vamps."

Dawn's shoulders stiffened as she mumbled out "oh yeah? How do you figure that?"

Inwardly Buffy crowed in triumph, she knew it! Years of working with secretive teenagers had really taught her important things about their psychology, plus the fact that she could clearly remember herself being one of those secretive teenagers didn't hurt either.

She cleared her throat, "Well, they're talking about me going to meet their 'father'," she made air quotes with the hand not on the steering wheel. "It's all very Don Corleone, I think they're planning to whack me once I enter their evil lair," she grinned.

Dawn's head whipped up, gaze wide with what Buffy suspected to be barely concealed panic "No no no! No whacking of the older sister, ever!"

Buffy smirked "Dawn Marie Summers, it's nice to know that you still care… Now care to tell me what you're hiding from me?"

Dawn shook her head slowly, "I can't, I promised Bella. But she promised me that either she'll tell you within the next three days, or I can do it myself."

Buffy eyed her carefully, slayer senses keeping clear of the other cars on the road. "Is this something dangerous?"

"No, Bella told me that it isn't. And I believe her, I don't think she'd lie to me."

Buffy drummed her nails against the steering wheel, their house was visible up ahead on the road. "Does this have something to do with vampires attending Forks High School?"

Her younger sister swallowed audibly, "yes. But please don't make me say anything beyond that, I'd feel like crap betraying a friend's promise."

The slayer cleared her throat, she knew that her relationship with her younger sister was unorthodox. She was her guardian, but yet she couldn't assume the role of her mother. Dawn was at that age where she needed a confidante to come to with any problems she might have, not a disciplinarian to avoid at all costs.

She pulled into the driveway and killed the ignition. Turning to her sister she took Dawn's left hand into her own two and looked into her eyes, "Dawnie, I trust you. You're eighteen years old and you've lived through enough apocalypses with me. So if you think that Bella's secret isn't dangerous, I'll trust you enough not to pry. But I'm giving the two of you three days to come to me, either way I have to know what's going on with these vamps, you understand?"

Dawn nodded her head and reached out to give her sister a hug, hiding a sniff she jumped out the car and headed into the house.

Buffy called out after her "I'm still going to dig into what Alice asked me to, I'm curious as hell!"

"Yeah yeah, I wouldn't have you any other way" Dawn called back laughing as she raced up the stairs to her room.

* * *

That evening Buffy picked up the phone and speed dialed a number, Faith's husky voice answered the other line "Yo B, I was just about to call you myself!"

Buffy laughed, they were both a quarter of a century old and Faith still called her B. She didn't know what needed to happen for the dark haired slayer to start calling her counterpart by her God given name, but at this point it was a comfort hearing the well worn greeting.

"Yeah, it's your turn to call ya boob. What's going on at your end?"

Faith laughed and Buffy could hear the sound of a door being closed, most likely Faith wanted some privacy for whatever she was about to impart.  
"There's a problem…" her voice was low and Buffy panicked.

"What? What is it? Is it an apocalypse? Do you need me to come out of retirement?"

"Nah it ain't that. Besides, the council's good with their apocalypses, they got the newbs for that shit. Best trained bunch of girls I've ever seen," a real fondness could be heard from the Boston slayer's voice.

Buffy knew that Faith still worked for the council as an independent contractor, she and Robin would take twice yearly month long road trips around the country to pick up any newly activated slayers. Most of the time, Faith worked as a martial arts instructor in New York, something about the big city really made the people want to protect themselves and Faith's classes were always full. Could have been her fighting expertise, or the fact that she wore itty bitty workout clothes to work- Buffy would never know.

"So what's going on? What's the what Faithie?"

Buffy grinned at Faith's disgruntled snort, the dark haired slayer hated the fact that the blonde had come across her middle school year book where plain as day, her childhood nickname had been scrawled across the page in scrawling, block letters.

"Um… "

"Spit it out..."

"RobinproposedtomeandIdon'tknowwhattodo!"

"Whoaaaa, the Rob man's planning to make an honest woman out of ya?" despite the rush of words from Faith, Buffy still had no problem deciphering her problem. She laughed at the very rarely heard terror coming through from Faith.

"Don't laugh at me blondie, I'm not wife material! Hell, I don't know anyone whose marriage is still standing!"

"Chill Fai, it'll be fine. You guys have been living together for the last two years, what's a piece of paper going to change?" Buffy addressed the heart of the matter. Despite Faith's real fear of commitment, Robin had managed to somehow lull Faith's boyfriend radar up to the point where she had moved into his house without even noticing it. Piece by piece her clothes had somehow migrated into his sprawling apartment. She spent weeks at his place without visiting her own and finally, six months into the arrangement she finally caught up to his sneaky ways and called Buffy raving about the audacity of the man. The blonde had put her on speakerphone and she and Dawn spent the afternoon trying to calm down the formerly rogue slayer, alternating between laughing at Faith's indignation at what happened and trying to calm her down enough not to kill her boyfriend.

Eighteen months later they were still living together, this time with both of them realizing the fact. A year into their cohabitation it was Faith who brought in Kit Kat to live with them, a small calico kitten with a temper to rival the slayer's. It was Robin who called Buffy this time, awed voice whispering the new developments in their life.

The blonde slayer smiled at her mystical sister's predicament, she knew that the two of them loved each other fiercely, but she also knew that Robin with his more traditional world view would want to marry Faith. Buffy figured that the man couldn't figure out a way to trick Faith into marrying him so he went about doing it the normal way, with a ring and a proposal.

Buffy cleared her voice, "Do you love him?"

With no hesitation whatsoever Faith answered her "hell yeah, you know I do."

"Then what's the problem?" Buffy countered.

There was silence on the other line then a hesitant Faith spoke up. "Fuck B, I think I'm getting married…"

Buffy grinned widely, if anybody deserved to be happy it was Faith. With her childhood on the streets and an abusive mother, it was a miracle that the dark haired slayer found a man as patient as Robin to slowly bring her out of her shell.

Buffy whooped in joy as Faith began laughing, "Congratulations! Fai, you're like a sister to me- all I want is for you to be happy."

They spent a few minutes discussing trivial matters and then Buffy got to the reason for her phone call, "Listen, I need a favour."

"Whatsup?" Faith got down to business.

"I need you to look for a watcher named Carlisle Cullen," she gave Faith his dates of birth and death and his location during his life.

Faith asked her "How urgent is this? I'm going to need to call some of the mini watchers, ask them to dig in the library."

"As soon as possible."

"Is there something weird going on in that town? I *told* you not to move to a town called Forks, there just has to be something freaky in a town named after cutlery!" Faith joked but Buffy knew that if she said that yes, there was something strange going on- chances were that Faith and Robin would show up on their doorstep at the next flight from New York.

"Nah, it's cool. Just something I'm digging around in," Buffy answered with a smile.

"Alrighty dude, just keep me in the know," Faith didn't dig further knowing that Buffy would open up if it was something she wanted others to know.

"I will, and congratulations again. I love you guys, give Rob a big hug for me 'kay?" Buffy said her goodbyes to Faith's good natured grumbles about her future husband and hung up smiling.

She walked to the kitchen and began preparing the ingredients for dinner, calling upstairs she yelled "Hey Dawn! Guess who's getting married?"

Her sister's curiousity got the best of her and a minute later she bounded down the steps, hair in a bun and a towel around her chest. She was getting ready for the shower as Buffy piqued her need to know instinct.

"Who is it?" Dawn flopped on a chair.

"Faith and Robin," Buffy got herself ready for the incredulous yells about to follow the announcement.

Dawn just stuffed a grape into her mouth from the plate sitting on the counter, "Oh cool. I already knew that Rob was going to propose, I pretty much figured that she'd bitch and moan but end up saying yes."

She hopped off the chair and began trudging her way back to her bathroom, leaving an open mouthed Buffy gaping after her. She chased after her younger sister, "Dawn wait up!"

Dawn stopped and turned around, somehow managing to look regal despite being clad only in a bright yellow towel.

"Yes?"

"How'd you know?"

"Oh, me and Robin picked out the ring together online. It's real pretty," she grinned.

Buffy gasped, "You knew that he was going to propose, you picked out the ring with him, and you didn't tell me????"

Dawn nodded, "well yeah. We wanted it to be a surprise," she put a consoling hand on Buffy's shoulder, "and I know you. You can't keep a secret, especially from Faith."

She shrugged in a 'what can you do?' gesture and made her way back to her shower.

Buffy just stood at the bottom of the stairs for a few minutes. Goddamn! Was she really getting that old, that her younger sister planned her best friend's proposal behind her back and Buffy didn't notice?

**8. Jacob**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

A/N- Thank you so much for the reviews, they inspire me greatly and ensure that I keep on writing.

I'm totally going AU on Twilight's New Moon here, Edward hasn't left yet but Jacob's already become a werewolf. He's shared this with his best friend, and Bella is still stuck between the furries and the vamps.

This next part was one chapter, but I had to break it up into two parts. I tried to make Bella not be as bitchy as she was in the books and the movie, cause I'm sorry- canon Bella is ungrateful and cruel. This next part needed to be done. Please review and let me know what you think.

On Tuesday, Jacob had come to see Bella at the high school. His form still as a monument, russet skin gleaming he stood waiting for her at the parking lot, his six foot five body taking up a hell of a lot of space where she usually parked her orange truck. Vibrating with nervous energy he stepped aside as she pulled up, he watched her get out eyes wary at the sight of him.  
"Hey Jake," she slowly climbed out of the cabin and made her way to where he stood.

"Bella," he nodded his head, the extra adrenalin translating to a stoicism that Jacob Black had never been able to embody.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him and leaned back against the car. Jake smiled, she looked beautiful that morning, her auburn hair was down and for once the black bags under her eyes were gone.

"I needed to talk to you Bella, about Edward, about us. I know that you won't come out to see me on your own, so I came to see you instead," he smiled. This had to work, she had to listen to him- they had been friends for years before the bloodsucker came along, she had to know that his heart was true.

Bella obviously had other thoughts as she shook her head in vehemence, "no Jake, that's enough. I can't keep on arguing with you about Edward, and frankly I'm tired of having to feel like I need to prove myself to my best friend. Why can't you just support me? Trust me?" she crossed her arms in front of her chest and shifted eyes downcast.

Jake reached out and pulled one of her hands into his, she was so tiny he felt like his one hand could swallow her arm whole. Sometimes he was afraid of breaking her, knowing the extra strength that lay beneath the surface made his every move more careful, her daintiness called to him but it also scared the hell out of him.

"Bella, I'm yours forever, you know that. But I can't trust you around him, he's a *vampire*, who knows what the hell the leech's been doing to you," he hissed the last part quietly but still the hate in his voice came through as loud as a bullhorn.

She ripped her hand out of his, darting her eyes around them for any eavesdroppers she stepped closer to him, invading his personal space. Her eyes were flashing green in her anger as she spat out "Now you listen to me Jacob Black, I have tried to be patient with you- God knows how I've tried. But this is the last straw! I love Edward, I accept the fact that he's a vampire just like I accept the fact that you're a werewolf. If you must know, Edward's never been able to do anything remotely supernatural to me! He can't even hear my thoughts!" she punctuated each angry phrase with a poke of her fingers into his chest. Jake couldn't feel the physical influence of her gestures, but the words that she bit out were like bullets, each biting into his heart making him stand up straighter with a sorrow that wouldn't stop.

Bella sighed and a hand through her hair mussing it up more than usual, she met his gaze with her own sad one "Jake, I love you like a brother. You're my best friend, you've been with me through everything. But I'm not in love with you, and I never will be. Can you please understand that?" she looked at him with longing in her eyes and if Jacob Black had been a bigger man, he probably would have smiled and taken her hand in his declaring that their friendship was forever. If Jacob Black had been a bigger man, he would have been able to put aside his love for her; he would have tried to make their relationship work no matter what because you don't just turn away from your best friends. All those what ifs flashed through his mind as he stood in the parking lot of Forks High School watching his love stare at him sadly, his face turned into a blank slate as he turned away from her and strode out of there- he wasn't a bigger man, and Jacob Black had just had his heart broken so he left, not turning back.

If he had turned back to look at the crying Bella, he would have seen a girl their age jump out of a red convertible and run towards the girl who had just broken his heart. He would have noticed her beauty; he would have looked into her eyes and seen her soul. Maybe, just maybe if Jacob Black had turned back or stayed with Bella- he would have felt his world shift on its axis with the realization that very few people ever get.

**9. Family**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

Please review!

So, here's where the glittery vampire thing comes into play.

Dawn stood in front of her locker staring inside its contents in silent contemplation. Two days had passed since her talk with Buffy, the deadline was today. She gripped her coffee cup tighter as she sighed inwardly, it seemed like no matter where they went- they were destined to be embroiled in the supernatural. Here they thought that they'd be able to move to a small town in Washington, only to land smack in the middle of a vampire nest. Dawn glanced over at Bella who was busily trying to find the right textbooks in her own locker next to hers. Dawn liked the girl, she really did- Bella had an innocence to her that Dawn had thought lost to the world, she believed the best of people and she trusted others easily.

She trusted Dawn within a day of knowing her, something that Dawn with her deeply hidden vulnerability was able to appreciate but she knew that Bella was a likely cause of trouble to come. After comforting her the other day on the parking lot, Dawn got an earful about Bella's best friend Jake who had done the stupid thing and fallen in love with a girl who would never love him. Dawn didn't know what she was hiding, but when listening to a sobbing Bella she knew that her friend was lying to her and that really raised Dawn's heckles.

Bella was cool, but Bella was likely to bring more complications into hers and Buffy's lives. For one thing, she was in a relationship that could rival Buffy's train wreck ones- with a vampire that seemed as broody as Angel and as obsessive as Angelus. Dawn really didn't like Edward, his insistence on having the right to decide his and Bella's relationship grated on Dawn's nerves- the Summers feminist instinct made her want to dropkick him every time he soulfully stared at Bella and by proximity her. She liked his family a lot more than him, surprisingly it was Rosalie and Emmett that called to her- Emmett's unbridled enthusiasm and lewd sense of humor appealed to Dawn's more tomboyish tendencies, and Rose's snarkiness and badly hidden pain was like the bat signal shining to Dawn's inner Batman. She wanted to figure the blonde vampire out, the desire to learn their histories was nagging at her more and more- her old curiosity surfaced with a vengeance every time Rose belittled a human for the slightest offenses.

Dawn slammed her locker shut, come what may- her first loyalty lay to her sister, her only family left, so she would do whatever needed to be done. If Bella didn't get the vamps to come and explain themselves, Dawn would support Buffy's every move as the slayer- an unknown threat was the biggest threat of all.

She turned around and began heading to class, she didn't bother to wait for Bella- she needed to get her head around some things. For one thing, she didn't see her friend make any attempts to get the vampires talking- she knew that Bella was still crazy in love with Edward, and she knew firsthand watching Buffy what kind of stupid shit love for a vampire made you do.

After art history with Jessica who kept making stupid, snide comments about Dawn's leather pants and turtleneck- the youngest Summers was really in a bad mood as she headed out of the classroom. Her mood only worsened as she saw Bella detach herself from the wall she had been leaning against, Alice Cullen buzzing with energy at her side.

"Hey Dawnie," Bella's voice was cautious. That was good, if she had seemed overly enthusiastic Dawn would probably have made her cry with a well placed remark. The day was shitty enough without friends that hid things, things that were most likely very relevant and important to Dawn's future well being.

"Bells, Alice," she nodded cordially at each of them.

Bella sighed as she motioned to Alice, "Listen Dawnie, I'm really sorry about all of this. I know that you didn't want to get in the middle of this, and I can't help feeling like it's my fault for dragging you into the whole mess." She looked like a kicked puppy doing the forward head tilt that hid her face with her hair, this Dawn knew to be her defense mechanism when things got overwhelming.

She sighed and her inner bitch monster subsided a little bit, "Bells don't worry, we would have needed to deal with the supernatural in Forks in any case. You're probably not dragging us into anything that we're not already in the middle of," she reached out and gave Bella a hug. Something about that girl just made Dawn's protective instincts rise to the surface big time. She was used to being surrounded with strong women and seeing somebody with such obvious self-confidence issues was a really big change for Dawn.

She noticed Alice watching them, an eyebrow raised in amusement as though she was laughing inwardly at something only her seer mind could see. Dawn raised an eyebrow back, defiant in the face of what she perceived to be as gentle mocking. She hated having to deal with seers, either they bitched and moaned about their visions or they were super annoying with the fact that they could see the future. She had only known Cordelia who helped others selflessly with her gift but she had good reason to complain about her visions, they ended up almost killing her.

Alice's musical voice reached Dawn's thoughts "Dawn I know that you don't like me much, but I really hope that we can become friends."

Dawn snorted, "I don't dislike you, I just don't know you. Plus I can tell that you're keeping some pretty heavy things from everybody and it's really pissing me off," she scowled.

Alice grinned shamelessly, "Don't worry, everything will be revealed today. Carlisle, me and Esme are going to meet with your sister- we'll tell you about everything."

Dawn sighed, "Yeah yeah, get your vampire kicks whatever way you can. Just don't go all evil and start sending us dead roses with notes saying 'Soon'."

Both girls looked at her strangely, Dawn looked blandly bored as she shrugged "What? Hey, it's happened before."

Buffy hummed as she gathered her things after work, her day had been a great one- productive, filled with students that wanted to speak to her and with consultations with various teachers. She felt alive knowing that she chose the right profession, she might have been chosen as the slayer and not had a choice in having to help people through her physical abilities. But this? This she chose herself, and she was damn good at it too.

She grinned as her phone chirped with an incoming message, it was Dawn 'I'll see you at home, getting a ride with Bella. A couple of friends are coming to dinner, don't freak.'

She frowned, she really didn't want her little sister wandering around town with an unknown vampire nest in the area. She shook her head, Dawn knew better than to go looking for trouble and she knew how to protect herself until her big sister could come and slay.

Still though, her mind was more troubled than before and she locked up her office with a solemn look on her face. Charlie sat on the bench outside the administration offices, back ramrod straight, he fidgeted with his hands. Buffy smiled, he was one of the sweetest people she had met in a very long time, his shyness passed off to Bella and his rigidity masked his insecurity. She hopped on the seat next to him and grinned as he almost jumped in his seat startled.

"Are you in trouble with the principal, Charlie Swan?"

He cleared his throat and blushed at his very unmanly previous maneuver.

"No actually, I was just waiting for you."

Buffy raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? Do tell…" she purred and was rewarded with his blush darkening. Oh he was really fun to embarrass, it had been a while since Buffy talked to a normal man- one not undead, not used to dealing with slayers on a daily basis.

"I wanted to give you a ride home," he looked at her, gaze not quite meeting her eyes.

Buffy grinned, "I have my car here."

"Oh," he looked embarrassed and the blonde felt bad for calling him out on what he clearly thought was a very unobtrusive way of seeing her again.

"But you know what? You can walk me to my car," she rose and motioned towards the parking lot where her baby sat gleaming in the dreariness of Forks weather.

"Alright, I'd like that," he rose after her and they headed out. Buffy cracking jokes all the while he smiled his enigmatic little half smiles.

"Well this is it, my mode of transportation- this is where we stop," she leaned against her car door as Charlie shuffled his feet. Buffy looked delighted, he was like a boy who was first starting to figure out that he liked girls more than friends.

"How old are you?" she blurted out, his age had been a mystery to her. There were times when he looked immeasurably old, beaten down with life's problems and there were times when his eyes gleamed with wicked pleasure, showing his past mischievous self.

Charlie looked a bit embarrassed as he answered her, "I'm turning thirty seven next month."

Buffy gaped, he was only eleven years older than her?

He interpreted her reaction and with a brief shrug of his shoulders he continued "I got married to Bella's mom when we were still in high school, Bella was born when I turned eighteen. I guess that's why I've never been a particularly good father to her," he didn't look like he was trying for her pity, he just looked like he was stating the facts.

Buffy slapped his arm gently, "Oh snap out of it Charlie! You love your daughter, everyone can see that! At least you're there for her, you're doing everything you can to support her which is more than I can say for a lot of other fathers," her voice shook with remembrance of Hank's betrayal.

Buffy glanced at her watch, it was really time that she got on the road. She sighed and grinned as a thought came to her, "Besides, it's just your 'stache that makes you look older. I'm sure that there's a super hunk waiting to come out from there," she winked at him and rose on her toes to give him a peck on the cheek.

Charlie looked flabbergasted as Buffy got in her car, she rolled down the window. "I'll see you soon Sheriff Swan," she called out and with her usual rev of sound, she drove out of the parking lot and headed home.

She still had a smile on her face as she entered her home, she didn't know what was going on between her and Bella's dad, but for the first time in a long time- she didn't feel like she'd suffocate with the intensity of somebody else's feelings.

"Dawn!" she called out, and the house echoed back with emptiness. Worriedly she dialed her sister's phone.

"Where are you?"

"I'm about a minute away, I'm coming home soon," her sister sounded distracted.

"Everything okay?"

"Peachy keen, the key's under the table."  
It was their code, worked out for emergencies when Dawn couldn't speak plainly for fear of other people overhearing.  
Buffy sighed with relief, her sister was fine.

She hung up and got a banana from the fruit bowl, just as she was about to sit down and turn the tv on, the home phone rang. She picked it up, the caller id showed a New York number. Faith or Robin. She smiled.

"Hey B, I got the info you wanted," –Faith.

"Thanks Fai, I hope it wasn't too much trouble."

"Nah, it was nothing, tracking down this Carlisle Cullen guy was actually easier than normal. Turns out he's like a cautionary tale for the watchers, almost everybody from the old council knows about the dude. Robin tracked down the watcher diaries covering the guy's life, and let me tell you- that shit's sure some heavy reading. Do you want me to tell you the overview of the info, I can email you the actual diaries; we scanned them in yesterday."

There was a knock on the door, Buffy looked through the peephole. Dawn stood next to Bella, Alice and a couple of the most conspicuous vampires she had ever seen outside of the hellmouth.

"Can you hang on a sec, let me get the door," she told Faith.

"Sure."

She opened the door to Dawn who was looking at the blond male vampire with something akin to annoyance. Her sister stepped through the doorway and dragged Bella in with her, Buffy raised an eyebrow at the vampires. She knew they thought they were different than other vamps so she decided to test their theory out.

"Carlisle Cullen I presume?" she asked the guy who nodded. The woman next to him was a brunette with the warmest gaze Buffy had ever seen outside of Joyce. She smiled at Buffy.

"I'm Esme, Carlisle's wife. It's very nice to finally meet you Buffy."

Buffy looked at them warily, from the very pretty blond dude who was giving her the slight creeps, to the overexcited Alice who looked her usual state- like a fairy hopped on pixie dust, to the motherly vampire; it was all a bit much.

"Sure," she smiled, the gesture not quite reaching her eyes.

She stepped aside from the doorway and motioned for them to come in, careful not to extend any verbal invitation.

They stepped through fine, Alice gave her a wink as she passed and whispered " I told you we were different."

Buffy just smiled tightly as she motioned for them to have a seat on the couch. Dawn was already banging in the kitchen, probably feeding the bottomless monster that was her stomach and Bella was standing in the periphery of her living room. More pale than usual, she tried to act like she wasn't freaked out by her new human friends meeting her old vampire friends.

Buffy motioned to the phone as the vampires made themselves comfortable, "Sorry I'm just on a phone call. It's pretty important."

Dawn came through the doorway, stuffing a large peanut butter and salami sandwich into her mouth.

The slayer looked at the room, making a quick decision she put Faith on speakerphone.

"Sorry about that Fai, go ahead. Let me know what you found and make sure that Rob sends me the scanned diaries, alright?"

"No problemo blondie. Alright, so Carlisle Cullen was born into a family of watchers; his uncle John Henry was one and his grandfather Wilson used to head the Council from sixteen twenty to sixteen forty-five. Pretty good guy from the testimonials, always made sure that the slayer had the best trained watchers looking after her, tried to help the girls as much has he could.

Anyway, our boy was born to the younger son- Wesley who became a preacher instead of following the family traditions. When Carlisle was twenty, his mom was slaughtered by a couple of werewolves. That made old Wes just a tad bit crazy, we're talking a full on vengeance kick. He took sonny, a couple of other like minded idiots, stole some books from Johnny the true watcher and began hunting."

Faith paused and there could be heard a shuffle of papers. Buffy looked impassively at the suddenly very still Carlisle and his wife, whose eyes had turned wide with the revelations coming from a stranger.

"And I use the term hunting very loosely, homeboy was still an amateur trying to do a professional's job. From the diaries, me and Rob counted about twenty-six normals that these guys killed for being furry or witchy."

Bella looked green in the corner of the room and Dawn was glaring daggers at the three vampires on the couch. Buffy stayed silent eyeing the blond man in front of her. Did ignorance really excuse him from having to answer for more than twenty lives? And God knows how many he killed after turning.

"B, you there? There's more, it's like a treasure box of people's fuckups documented in here."

Buffy sighed, "Yeah I'm listening…"

"'Kay, Carlisle turns twenty three and starts having conscience issues. He realizes that daddy dearest is killing normal humans so he does the stupidest thing a human hunter can do in our business-."

Buffy interrupted her with a glance at the even more pale Carlisle.

"He went off on his own, didn't he?"

"Yup, got it in one. Our golden boy vampire hunter got himself turned, his dad found his body during on of their raids. He dragged him to a potato cellar so that his cronies wouldn't try to destroy what was left of his son and stayed with him until the morning. B, this guy was really fucked in the head but he must have loved his son cause what happens next? It sure ain't pretty."

Esme was squeezing Carlisle's hand tightly and Alice had her eyes closed, trying to distance herself from what she was hearing.

"Keep talking," Buffy prompted.

"Alright, it turns out that during their three year witch trials, Carlisle's dad Wesley was being continuously approached by D'Hoffryn. I don't know if you know your demon history, but this was during the big wars in Arashmahaar. Lots of vengeance demons trying to take over the big kahuna job. D'Hoffryn really tried to recruit the dad, there's something written here about Wes's vengeance singing across dimensions."

"Oh crap," it was never a good thing if vengeance demons got involved.

"Yeah, crap's about right. Cause once Carlisle gets his stupid self killed- Wes snaps out of his kick. Wife's still dead and only son about to become a monster, so what's he do? He makes a deal with D'Hoffryn, Lord and Master of Arashmaahar. Wes makes a deal with our favourite vengeance guy that Carlisle Cullen and any other vampire he sires don't lose their soul when they die. He goes a bit further though, he gives sonny and his future line the ability to walk during the day. Only stipulation is that they immediately become visible as non-humans. Man B, D'Hoffryn must have the weirdest sense of humor cause the next part is funny as hell…"

Faith snorted and vainly tried to stop laughing.

"Dude," snort,laugh "if these vamps go in the sunlight- their skin starts to freaking glitter!" her laughter became raucous at this point.

Buffy smiled at the phone.

"What did D'Hoffryn get out of the deal?"

Very loud laughing could be heard over the phone, and Robin picked up the line.

"Hey Buff, sorry about that. She still can't stop laughing about the glittering vampires. We heard about this in the morning, and she still finds it funny. He got the preacher. Wesley gave D'Hoffryn his life essence, the soul of a man of God. That's like the steroid equivalent of a power surge for a demon. With Wesley Cullen's sacrifice, D'Hoffryn was able to gain power over all of Arashmahaar- even the parts still rules by other demons."

The room was deathly quiet except for Dawn's chomping, the vampires were sitting in shock and Buffy rubbed her temples- she was really getting tired of dealing with other people's fuckups, it seemed that hundreds of years later they still managed to find her.

"Alright, I really hope that's it. Right Rob?"

Faith's voice, choking on her laughter could be heard over the line "Tell her about the other thing!"

Robin's voice was solemn as he continued, "Buffy, what was Joyce's maiden name?"

Buffy frowned in confusion, what the hell did her mom have to do with this?

She answered "Daughtry, why?"

Robin sighed, "I don't know if this is relevant, but part of the reason why Carlisle got his shit together is cause he got married when he was twenty two. To a Christina Daughtry. They had a son, and after his disappearance- his wife took back her maiden name and raised the son on her own. I think that there's a chance that Christina Daughtry was your many times grandmother. Merrick was investigating the chance that you're related to the glittering vampires before he died."

Buffy was silent as Dawn choked on her sandwich.

She took Robin off speakerphone and with a scary calm that had terrified many a demon during her time in Sunnydale she said goodbye to him.

"Thanks for all the info, you guys are amazing."

She hung up and turned back to the room, fists balled up and expression furious.

A/N: I know I'm evil, I try my best to be. Please review!!!

**10. Family- 2**

Please Review!!

Bella gulped, the small blonde woman who she had taken such a liking to was now looking more threatening then all of the supernatural creatures she had previously dealt with in Forks. She swore that she could see the air crackle around Buffy as she stalked towards the previously unnoticed metal chest half hidden in the living room corner. Dawn gave a startled glance at her sister's actions and stood up slowly, backing away from the vampires she put her body between them and her friend, keeping her eyes on her sister at all times.

Bella's eyes widened as she saw Carlisle uncoil his body from the couch, gait dangerous as he stood in front of his wife and daughter. She whipped her head around at Buffy, the blonde had now fully become a predator- she took out a red and silver double headed axe with a sharpened wood handle. Swinging it experimentally in her hands, she advanced on the vampires.

"No! What are you doing?" Bella surged towards the people she loved only to be stopped short by Dawn, incredulously she looked at her friend- the blue eyes she had known to sparkle with warmth were now veiled masks as they looked at the massacre about to occur in front of them.

"Stop! They're not here to hurt you! Just listen to us, whoever told you all of that is lying!" Bella threw her weight against Dawn, trying to break free, trying to prevent unnecessary damage from occurring.

Carlisle shook his head slowly, his gaze sad as he focused on the thrashing Bella. "They were telling the truth."

How could Alice just stand there so calmly as she watched her father get threatened with such a sharp weapon? Esme was clearly unnerved, eyes following every swing of Buffy's axe she kept her hand firmly clasped in Carlisle's.

Buffy performed a complicated maneuver with the axe, sharp blade flying through the air in a widening arc, "Why are you here?"

Carlisle glanced down at Esme who looked fearful. Alice began looking guilty, shifting her perspective from Buffy with the whirling weapon, to Dawn keeping Bella away from her family and to her parents who looked lost- she whispered "it wasn't supposed to be like this."

Carlisle looked at his daughter, trying to find a way to gauge the right thing to say in this situation.

Alice looked up at him with sorrow, "She is the slayer."

Carlisle's golden eyes darkened with sudden anger as Esme gasped in shock.

Buffy turned her gaze on them again, stopping her axe in an arm's length away from her body she held it perfectly balanced and ready to strike. Bella marveled at how much the blonde had changed within the span of a few minutes, gone was the bubbly counselor of schooltime- in her place stood a stone cold killer.

The killer in front of them snarled at the vampires, Bella felt more than actually saw Dawn tense in front of her. Even in that field with Victoria and James, Bella had never actually been so terrified. Or felt so helpless.

"I know you guys think that you're pretty much unkillable by us normal humans, but this here nifty axe has killed hundreds of the worst vampires that hell had thrown at me," Buffy said with a deadly calm.  
Faster than the eye could see, she jumped the distance between her and Carlisle bringing the red, gleaming edge of the axe against his neck.  
"Do you want to test out how fast I can decapitate a sparkly vampire?" her tone conversationalist, her eyes dead with calm intent, Buffy's voice echoed in the very silent room.

Alice shifted to help her father but Carlisle made a motion with his hand for her to stay back.

Her voice strained with bubbling rage, Buffy repeated her earlier question "Why are you here?"

It was Esme who answered the question, her hand still gripping her husband's and her topaz eyes wide open with worry for her family she still managed to say the one thing that diffused the situation from becoming a full fledged fight, "Because we were worried about you."

Buffy sighed and twisted her head to look at her, the blonde's eyes still held a bit of her residual anger but Esme's calm demeanor made it hard for anyone to stare with hate at her. The motherly vampire, and what a contradiction in terms that was, reached her hand out and touched Buffy's cheek "I'm so sorry for everything's that's happened to you. If we had known how hard you had it, we would have tried to help you in any way we could."

Buffy sighed again and shook her head in reproach, looking at the three vampires one of which she had currently pinned with her axe, she bit her lip with nervousness and said "I know I'm probably going to regret this," and stepped away from Carlisle, axe falling to the side but still gripped firmly in her hand.

She turned to Dawn and smiled at the fact that the youngest Summers still held Bella's hand in what was sure to be a bruising grip, "I think you can let go of her now Dawnie," she motioned.

Dawn let Bella's hand fall and stepped away from the now furious girl, she looked at her sister and the vampires in the room, Bella who was turning a lovely shade of red in her anger, tilted her head in contemplation at her choices and stepped back in the kitchen. The eighteen year old Dawn Summers' motto, 'When in doubt, feed thy stomach.'

Bella followed her inside, stomping in irritated indignation she yelled "What the hell were you doing out there? Your sister could've been killed! Or she could've killed Carlisle! You didn't even know if they were a threat to you!"

Dawn was calmly foraging in the fridge, her shirt had ridden up in her endeavors and Bella briefly caught a glimpse of an inked on symbol on Dawn's pale hipbones. Briefly she wondered why she had never asked if her friend had any tattoos, but then snapped her attention back to glaring at said friend who was stacking various jars around the kitchentop.

Dawn turned to her, "When you've lived through as many life threatening situations where vamps most likely want to kidnap you, kill you, and or use your blood for some mystical, magical doohickey- you learn that anything unknown has the potential to be the biggest threat you've ever faced."

She put her face into her palms on the table, taking a deep breath she raised her head to face Bella again and the shorter girl was awed by the look of furious loyalty on Dawn's face.

"She is my sister, she's the only family in the world that I have left. I was okay with them being some random vamps living in town, but they're trying to get close to us. I'm sorry Bella, but if there was a chance that the Cullens were a threat to her," Dawn's blue eyes were shining with unshed tears, "I would have done everything to kill every each one of them before they got to her."

Ah, family loyalty. Bella got that, especially recently, after the trouble with Edward and how Charlie had really come through for her- she could definitely understand being loyal to your family. She guessed that for Dawn though, the loyalty was greatly heightened, there was only her sister left in the world and that was just incredibly sad. She looked at the older girl and moved in to hug her, she guessed that Dawn needed the tactile reassurement and really? In the grand scheme of things, the situation didn't go as badly as it could have. Buffy didn't kill any of the Cullens, and Dawn had been doing the only thing she could have at that moment. She protected the 'helpless human' in the room. So Bella hugged her friend tightly, allowed her a moment to pull herself together and kindly told her "Let's get out into the living room. You don't want your pissed off sister sitting by herself with the vampires do you?"

Dawn laughed shakily as she shook her head, she looked quickly at the different jars that she had pulled out of the fridge and selecting the one that said olives in big green letters, she headed towards the living room. Bella smiled as she took in her friend's odd eating tastes and followed her, a thought popping into her head- "Hey what's a slayer anyway?"

Esme sat next to a marginally less pale Carlisle, a visibly shaken Alice stood by the window staring at something only she could see. Buffy was standing with her axe still firmly in her hands, front to the vampires and a carefully blank expression on her face.

Dawn entered with Bella trailing behind her, "So what's going on?"

Buffy moved towards her, threw an arm over her younger sister's shoulders and pointed with her axe at the three undead beings in the room, "Dawnie check this out, this is apparently the last of our family. Besides Hank, but really who counts that asshole as family?"

Carlisle started at her words, "He's still alive? I thought he was dead, he didn't come to Joyce's funeral."

Buffy raised a well groomed eyebrow, "Oh the bastard's still alive, last I heard he was flourishing somewhere in Spain with secretary number four. Younger than me apparently," she shrugged with one shoulder. Squeezing Dawn again, she moved to place her axe back into the weapons cabinet. Everybody relaxed, and Dawn moved to sit in the oversize chintz chair with both her knees propped up to her chest, opened her jar of olives and plopped a plump green one into her mouth.

Thoughtfully she began to chew, swallowed her olive and addressed Carlisle "So what, you guys still have your souls right?"

Carlisle swallowed, "We always wondered about that, but if your friend is correct, then yes we do."

Buffy perched on the arm of Dawn's chair, "How do you know that Hank never came to mom's funeral?"

Esme and Carlisle shared a look, "We always tried to keep track of our descendants, I was the only one in our family that had any children before being turned and I wanted to make sure that my line was alright in the world." Carlisle scooted to the edge of the couch, "I knew that you girls were in trouble after Joyce died, but I sent you money every month to help out. We had it set up as an account coming from one of Joyce's aunts that you had never met."

Buffy began to absentmindedly stroke Dawn's hair, "We never got any money, but then again I was probably a little too busy dying and coming back to make sure that everything was on the up and up."

Everyone gaped, but Bella was the first to voice the question "You died?"

She crossed her arms around her tighter as everyone glanced at her, standing between the sitting vampires on the couch and the sisters perched on the armchair- she looked a little lost as she tried to straddle that faint line between the old and the new.

Alice turned away from the window, tilting her head to the side in her usual pixie inquisitiveness she softly said "And they brought you back."

Dawn squeezed Buffy's hand, her knuckles turning white with the effort. "Guys I think it's kind of cool that we have family that wants to get to know us, but frankly? We don't trust you yet. So show and tell will have to wait for another day."

Esme smiled at them, "That's alright Dawn, I'm just happy that we're going to get a chance to get to know the wonderful young women you and your sister have become." She and Carlisle had caught Dawn's slight slip of the tongue, she had said that they didn't trust them yet. Yet. That meant that the sisters would give them the chance to become family, because Esme figured that if one sister said something without the other one contradicting- that was a very good thing.

She gestured to her husband and daughter, "We'd love to be visit you again, and maybe when you become more comfortable with us, you can come to our home. Bella has been there, I'm sure she'd love to come back with you." Bella looked up, her situation with Edward was still unresolved but she knew that she'd try to do everything she could to support her friends and the family she had come to love.

"Yeah, I'd like that," she softly said and was rewarded by Esme's and Dawn's smiles. She marveled, even though she knew that they weren't related by blood their warmth was still paralleled in each other's expressions.

Alice smiled at her parents, "Everything's going to be okay, don't worry. But we have to get back, I can feel Jazz becoming worried- he's projecting to me."

Esme and Carlisle rose from their positions and moved to stand beside Alice. Buffy pulled Dawn up with her and approached the blond man.

She coughed a little self consciously, "Listen, about the whole axe threatening thing- you realize why I did it right?"

Carlisle smiled and for the first time during the whole meeting, Buffy felt a shred of hope light up within her.

"I think, that if a slayer was approached by vampires clamoring to be family. Cursed vampires," he dragged his hand through his golden locks and the humans realized that the vampire family had a lot of revelations to deal with themselves, "I think that a threat would be the expected response." He smiled and his beautiful face transformed with the gesture. Briefly Buffy sent a complaint into the universe on why she didn't inherit more of his genes. He smiled fondly at his wife and daughter and they began to file towards the door. As they reached the door he stopped and turned around almost bumping into Dawn who was walking behind them.

"Sorry," he laughed.

"It's fine, don't worry about it," Dawn replied.

He smiled again at her and Buffy. Turning to Bella he asked her, "Do you want us to drop you off at home?"

Bella glanced at the sisters watching her for a reaction to what happened, she stepped next to Dawn and slipped an arm through hers in the gesture that had become so familiar to everyone who knew the two girls. "That's okay, I can get Buffy to take me home."

Buffy came to stand next to Dawn, "Stay for dinner, I'm cooking lasagna."

Bella smiled, maybe the blonde was hiding things. Maybe both her and Dawn were, but for now Bella was content to bask in the atmosphere of their home. It was beginning to look like the Cullens wouldn't be the only adopted family in town she would have.

Carlisle nodded his head, "I hope we'll see you more often from now on Bella," he gently admonished her. Turning to Buffy, he tentatively reached out a hand and for a moment it looked like she would leave him standing there like a fool. Finally she smiled and shook his hand and Bella let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

Carlisle turned around and headed out of the house, meeting his wife and daughter who were waiting just outside.

Esme smiled at the girls, "Buffy, I'd like to see you girls soon, alright?"

Buffy slowly nodded her head, "I think that it would be okay for us to try to get to know you."

Esme's face lit up in pleasure as she followed her husband.

Alice grinned at the Summers girls and at the silent Bella. Giving a jaunty little wave of her hand she moved after her parents, her voice drifted back to reach them before they closed the door "I told you we're different, we're family."

Buffy laughed as she closed the door behind them.

**11. Slayer dream**

Disclaimer on Ch.1

Warning, next part is Buffy's slayer dream. It's extremely violent and graphic. You can just skip it if you want the overall feeling of the story to stay light for you. I will address the implications of the dream in the next chapter that will be posted in a couple of hours.

Please remember to review!

The scythe was singing to her, her blood buzzed with the magic screaming at her to do violence. She threw a glance at her sister who was casting with a dark haired guy by her side, Dawn's temple was bleeding, her voice was hoarse from screaming. The guy was straining, a snarl coming from deep inside his chest. He looked like he was slowly being electrocuted as a scream finally broke out of him. Dawn gripped his hand tighter as he strained with the force of the energies going through the two of them. Her sister's nose was bleeding now, the paleness of Dawn's skin contrasting with the blood coating her face now.

Buffy slowly turned back to the violence going on in front of her, Carlisle was being tossed ten feet in the air by a dark haired vampire, he landed in a crouch and sprinted back towards his enemy. Edward was trading blows with a big hulking vampire who looked like the Frankenstein monster turned the undead. Emmett and Rosalie were right in the middle of a fray of vampires, screams of pain and rage coming from the pile of writhing flesh. Jasper's eyes were blood red as he tore a vicious path through the red coated vampires in front of them, Alice was nowhere to be seen.

Buffy looked for her and Esme, where the fuck was Bella? A wind picked up carrying the smell of blood and violence across the battlefield, the strands of her blond hair flew around her face as frantically she searched for the remainder of her family.

Bella's hoarse scream of "Nooo!!!" carried on the draft to her and Buffy began to run towards where she saw the small auburn haired girl kneeling beside two bodies. She picked up speed as the urgency of the situation flooded her body with panic. As she neared them, the distinct smell of vampire blood became overwhelming, still she pressed on. Alice's body was rising above the ground, her spine arced in a painful bow. Gurgles of wet sound came from her and vomit rose in Buffy's throat as she saw that her throat was cut down to the bone, meat and blood lay strewn open for the world to see like a vulgar reminder of the vampire's mortality. Esme lay beside her, and at first Buffy didn't realize what was wrong with her. A closer look at her light pink sweather showed an almost obscenely small trail of blood coming from the side of her hipbone. Startled Buffy looked at the sobbing Bella, she raised her eyes to meet the slayer's and Buffy stumbled back. Bella had been turned, no longer the hazel green of her little sister's best friend they were now a blood tinged topaz.

"Her ribs," Bella whispered at Buffy's shock, the blond turned back to Esme and gingerly lifted the sweater up from the woman's body. It felt like it was sticking to something, almost like cellophane sticking to meat at the butcher's and belatedly Buffy realized her mistake. Below the fabric, Esme's ribs were cracked open, the bloody mess a sharp contrast with the bleached bones.

And Buffy couldn't hold down her gag reflex anymore, turning away from her family she stumbled to the side and threw up. It looked like blood coming out of her.

Buffy let out a long scream as she woke up. She tried to settle her breathing but all she could do was gasp at the horror of her dream. Dawn came barreling through the door, hitting her elbow unconsciously on the doorway and not even noticing it as she raced towards her sister's side. Buffy threw off her covers, her sweat soaked body reveled in the feel of the nighttime air against her skin. She grasped her head with her hands, her hair was matted from thrashing in the wake of her vision and out of habit she immediately tried to pat it down into some semblance of order.

It had been two years since she last had a slayer dream, she guessed it had something to do with the line going through Faith now. This though? This massacre that still stayed with her behind closed eyelids, this was definitely a slayer dream. It had the surround vision, smell every drop of blood being spilled, hear every scream quality to it.

Dawn crouched in front of her, sharp worry making her already wide blue eyes shine with nerves.  
"Nightmare?" she stroked Buffy's shoulder.

"Slayer dream," she replied and Dawn swallowed loudly.

Buffy pulled her little sister to her and for once Dawn didn't complain about the stickiness coating her sister's skin being now transferred over to her. They gripped each other tightly and Dawn didn't complain about the force with which they gripped each other, the urgency of the situation not lost to both of last time Buffy had a slayer dream- she almost died in the caverns of the Sunnydale hellmouth. Giving one last squeeze to her younger sister she stood up.

"We should get to know the Cullens more, even if they're vampires they're still family," Buffy nervously licked her lips.

She took her sister's pale hand into her own and looked into her eyes.

"They're going to get slaughtered without us here Dawnie, they'll need us."

**12. Jacob Black**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

Please review!

"I get nightmares, stuff that's happened already just comes back to me. I see my sister dead, flying off the tower, landing in the rubble with her body broken." Bella stayed quiet throughout Dawn's murmurings, her hand clutched the older girl's in a sign of respect and support. It's been like this for the last week, Dawn has come to trust her. Opening up a part of her past that hurts her the most every time they talk, snippets of information filtering through Bella's naively rosy worldview. Vampires that aren't as beautiful as the Cullens, demons congregating with a common goal in mind, witches fighting each other to save the rest of humanity from death. It's all ugly, violent and so unlike everything Bella has ever faced that she has no choice but to stay silent. What can she say really?

Every morning they go to school where they interact with others, where Dawn takes vicious pleasure in belittling Jessica and Eric who in return retaliate in ways that their puny high school minds tell them are cruel. Bella thinks about her life a lot more than she previously has, she thinks about choice, responsibility. She wonders if she was given Buffy's immense responsibility, what would she do? Would she try to make some semblance of a normal life for herself? Or would she go down fighting? Bella doesn't know, and for the first time- she becomes very aware of just how lucky she is that she doesn't face that choice. Because she's not sure she could, Bella Swan is not strong, she relies on others to be strong for her. Which is where the crux of her current problem with Edward lies, her weakness.

Buffy swallowed audibly as saliva coated her mouth in anticipation. Her hands shook slightly as she unwrapped the wonder in front of her, she could almost feel little tears of joy gather in the corners of her eyes but she didn't care. The excitement, the feeling of achievement that it was here! And all for her, it was just hers.

A knock on her door interrupted the chocolate feeding frenzy that Buffy was about to go on, she frowned as she whipped her head between the door and the thick slice of chocolate fudge cake that was just beckoning to her with its tempting advances. Choices, choices. She took a deep breath, she was an adult, she could put off the sugary gratification that the cake was sure to provide.

She rose from her seat and moved to open the door that she had so considerately locked before pulling out the cake, she had been thinking that nobody would interrupt her during her lunchtime but alas- there were still matters for Buffy to take care of.

She opened the door to find Carlisle and Esme standing behind it, she smiled slightly "Hey guys, thanks for coming."

Carlisle stepped through first, "Hello Buffy, Dawn was quite insistent when she told Rosalie to make sure we talked to you today."

Esme smiled as she reached to give Buffy a hug, the blonde hesitated for a second before moving into the vampire's slightly cool embrace. Ever since the confrontation in their house, Esme had done everything she could to ensure that the slight bridge of understanding between their families was strengthened. Buffy could see that Esme was one of the warmest people she had ever met, she loved her family and tended to do the protective mother hen thing very well. Buffy and Dawn were slowly starting to trust the Cullens, the fact of the matter was that they were used to being friends with vampires- Spike and Angel came to mind, but they were still freaked out by anybody who tried to get close to them as family. It had been so long that they just had each other in the world, that anybody's advances into their makeshift little family were bound to be greeted with suspicion. Buffy's heart clenched painfully at the thought of Spike, she had began to love him as he died saving them all. She had truly meant it that day in the hellmouth, but now she had to live for her sister. She had to live for herself and not keep the thoughts of the past break her heart anymore.

"I'm glad you guys are here," Buffy said and motioned for the couple to take a seat in her chairs usually reserved for the delinquent students sent to her.

Carlisle gave her a smirk of amusement as he realized their position and Esme dropped her purse on the ground as she crossed her legs in such a ladylike manner that Buffy made a mental note to talk to her about etiquette lessons for Dawn. Not for her, mind you, because Buffy was sure that she was as ladylike as they came. Deciding not to dwell on the fact that she was a lousy cook, had a temper like nobody's business and drove her car way too fast usually with her underage sister in the passenger seat- Buffy moved on to why she invited the heads of the Cullen family into her office.

"I have slayer dreams, and I had one last night…"

* * *

Jake sat on the big black bike he put together for Bella. The parking lot was mostly empty, just the group of stoners sitting in their usual spot, to the left of the stairs one stoner more or less sober keeping lookout for authority figures. He looked down on his hands, so changed by his shifter transformation they were no longer the slender fingers he remembered from his junior year. His body was now a fighting machine, muscles on top of muscles mystically enhanced to protect his tribe from the leeches living on the other side of the boundary. Jake shivered in disgust at the thought that his best friend was in love with one of the vampires, he swallowed his revulsion down. He knew that despite everything Bella would always be in his life, her friendship was too valuable for him to throw away. And frankly, he knew that if he stayed in her life- his constant presence would be a huge source of annoyance to Edward. So Jake grinned, even as his heart skipped a beat at the thought that Bella would never belong to him. There were still smaller pleasures to be gained from life, like pissing off brooding bloodsuckers.

The end of day bell sounded and he straightened up, smoothing the lines of the leather jacket on him. He parked the bike specifically close to Bella's truck in the knowledge that she'd have to speak to him before she left. He glanced down at his watch, the leather Quielete protection amulets snaking their way around his skin- Bella would soon be here.

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced his friend heading towards her car. Her gaze widened as she saw him sitting beside it, and he was a little saddened to see her adopt her usual defensive stance once she neared him.

"Hey Bella, how've you been?" he asked, voice soft.

"How do you think I've been?" she countered and Jake marveled at the new thread of steel that could be heard going through her voice.

She tucked a strand of flyway hair behind her ear, "I've been missing my best friend like crazy, that's how I've been" she murmured.

Jake straightened as he stood up from the bike, moving to hug her he whispered "I'm sorry Bella, I'm so sorry. I love you, I do and there's nothing that can change that."

She pulled away from him, gaze horrified at the thought that he'd resumed his previous line of encouraging her to pick him over Edward.

Jake chuckled, "I love you, you're my best friend Bella. We've been through everything together, and there's no way in hell I'm going to let the bloodsucker have you without getting on his nerves. It's my duty."

She laughed and hugged him again. Jake smiled as he motioned to the bike standing before them. "This is for you, I've been working on it during the summer."

Bella gasped as a hand flew towards her face, "Oh Jake, no. I can't take that from you." She stepped away from him and the motorcycle.

He gripped her shoulders tightly, "Bella, I've been working on this bike for the last four months with the intention of giving it to you. It's not some kind of ploy to steal you away from Edward, it's a present from the guy you've grown up with."

She looked at him, gazing deep into his eyes she saw his sincerity, his heartbreak, his love. She sighed and then laughed again, putting her arm through his in the gesture she had so perfected with Dawn- she said "thank you Jake. I love it."

He grinned his usual infectious smile as he put his hands in his pockets, "Good I'm glad."

Bella bounced on the balls of her feet and he lifted an amused eyebrow at the unusual display of enthusiasm coming from his normally taciturn friend. "Oh, you haven't met Dawn yet! Wait here, I'll go get her. She's amazing, I think you'll really like her."

Jake crossed his arms, "She's new?"

"Yeah, she just started at the school this year. Transferred from California."

Jake smirked as she almost vibrated with excitement at his meeting her new friend. He was deeply skeptical that he'd like the new girl. From what he'd seen of the Forks High girls they were all deeply immature or just preoccupied with matters too irrelevant to his new shifter worldview. Coupled with the fact that this Dawn girl was from California, and he had a mental image of an empty headed blonde in pink bouncing out to meet him.  
Especially with a name like that. But anybody who'd had Bella that excited was obviously not as bad as his imagination made them out to be. Plus Jake was kind of glad that she was making friends outside of the Cullen family.

He nodded, "Sure go get her."

Leaning back against the bike, he prepared to wait as Bella left to go back inside the school to find her new Californian friend.

Dawn strolled through the school hallways, Mikey by her side buzzing about his chances with Bella. She rolled her eyes, the kid was a little one track minded with his insistence that it was only a matter of time before Bella picked him. Dawn smirked, he was just way too bland to steal Bella away from her obsessive vamp honey. He was definitely a sweet guy, one of the few friends she had made in the new high school besides Bella, the Cullens and some kids she had met in her extra-credit Art History class.

They reached the back exit, Mikey stopped as he glanced at her. "Tell me why we're exiting through the back of the school again?"

Dawn grinned widely, "Cause I don't want Buffy to see that I've taken her favorite leather pants. It's a pain in the ass cause she stole them off Faith and they don't fit her properly, but I think she has sentimental reasons for keeping them. Bella drove me to the school today, so my older sister hasn't seen their disappearance. I prefer to keep it that way, with luck I'll have them back in her closet without her noticing that I wore them today."

Mikey's eyes had taken on a glazed look at the mental images of the new guidance counselor wearing the red leather pants currently sported by the brunette on his side. He would have felt some disloyalty fantasizing about Bella's best friend, but her sister was fair game as far as his teenage mind was concerned. Plus she was just too young and too hot not to be an object of lust for the Forks High male student populace.

Dawn smacked the back of his head, "Stop it!"

"Ow!" he rubbed his head and glared at her reproachfully, "what was that for?"

"I don't know who you were fantasizing in there Pervy MacPerverson, but stop it!" Dawn grinned as she practically skipped out heading towards the parking lot.

Mike blushed and headed after her. She was much too blunt and had a habit of calling him out on things that Bella didn't even notice.

As they neared Bella's distinctive colored truck, they noticed a motorcycle parked beside it. A very tall Native American teen wearing a leather jacket stood leaning against the bike. Dawn stumbled a bit as she caught sight of him, Mike's earlier glazed look transferring to her.

Giving him a frankly appraising look she muttered appreciatively, "Whoa boy, that is one hot guy. Break me off a piece of that salty goodness," she breathed out and fluttered a hand near her face to create some semblance of a breeze to cool her down.

Mike blushed again and wished fervently that Bella was here so he could say his goodbyes and leave for home.

The universe must have been listening because Bella's bouncing steps could be heard and she was standing beside them.

A couple of things occurred during the next few minutes, most of them Mike didn't understand. The guy raised his eyes from where he was looking at the bike and his gaze met Dawn's, the brunette stilled as they locked in on each other. Her wide blue eyes widened in her face impossibly as the guy seemed to forget what he was going to say as he looked at her. Mike noticed him clench his hands into white knuckled fists by his side, Dawn sucked in a deep breath as she took a tiny step towards him.

Bella looked from her new friend to her old one and voiced Mike's confusion as she asked "Dawn, I didn't know you knew Jake."

Her gaze still locked on the huge guy in front of her the brunette licked her lips and whispered, "I don't."

Bella frowned in confusion at the two of them. Then what the hell was going on here?

Jake cleared his throat, still gazing at the most important person in his life, and in a raspy voice he uttered the one phrase that could describe the situation for him- "Holy shit."

**13. Jacob Black you suck**

Disclaimers on ch.1

A mega thank you to Gitch who made an amazing pic for this story. .org/Story-19002-21/Gitch+Fanart+for+my+favorite+

It's awesomely cool that somebody's made a picture for me, I feel loved! xoxo

Jake swallowed, holy shit- he had just imprinted on Bella's new friend. He knew that he should be more conscientious of the fact that the girl who he thought of as the love of his life was now nothing in comparison to the still virtually unknown brunette in front of him. She was breathtaking; huge blue eyes framed by lush dark lashes, lithe curvy body ensconced in tight red leather pants and a black tank top and she was tall- reaching almost to his shoulder. Jake felt his body temperature rise as his senses registered the flush of her skin and her shallow breaths, he mentally smirked, she was just as affected by him as he was by her. His mind was reeling with a thousand questions that he desperately wanted answered, he wanted to know everything about her.

The guy standing beside her kept looking at the both of them like they had lost their minds. And they most likely looked like they had, they hadn't spoken for a couple of minutes still stuck in a world of their own. Bella stirred again as she tried to gain their attention, she cleared her throat and shuffled her feet in the effort to have them turn away from each other. All of this barely registered on Jake's senses, the small distractions feeling like inconsequential pebbles hitting a bulletproof wall. And then everything went red as the guy standing beside Dawn reached out to touch her arm. Jake snarled loudly as a haze of rage descended on him, he grabbed his arm not even noticing the look of pain and surprise on the other guy's face.

Dawn whipped her head at Mikey's stupid move. Jacob growled as he moved to intercept her classmate's arm before it made contact with her skin. She quickly pulled Jake's arm away from Mikey and he still held on, his skin felt extremely hot lined with straining muscles.

"Stop! Please, you're hurting him…" she implored.

Jake still stared at Mike who looked like he wanted to be disappear into the ground, growls of anger rumbled the larger teen's chest.

Dawn moved closer to him, "he didn't mean it. Let him go. Please."

Jake turned his head to look into her eyes, scared that she would run at his animalistic outburst. To his intense relief she didn't look scared, she just looked intensely concerned. Briefly he registered the guy rushing off after yelling a hurried goodbye to Bella, scrambling for the safety of his own car.

Dawn smiled at him, a smile that went straight to Jacob Black's heart making him feel hyper with excitement and serene with quiet joy that he had found her. She let go of his arm making him long for the skin to skin contact.

Dawn straightened her hair and winked at him, "so what was up with the wolfy outburst?"

He gaped immediately, looking with accusation at Bella. Did she just go around telling everybody his secret now? Bella looked just as confused as he felt thankfully so his temper didn't rise anymore than it already had.

Dawn saw their feeling reflected in their gestures, "oh, she didn't tell me. You just feel like a friend I have, Oz. He's a werewolf too," Dawn said nonchalantly.

"What the hell?" Jake couldn't stop the strand of anger at her words that she had known another wolf closely enough to know about the biggest secret a shifter could have.

Dawn cocked an eyebrow, "I'm sensitive to people's auras. It's a gift." She then proceeded to glare at him, "don't you raise your voice at me. That temper of yours is going to get you bitchslapped one day."

Jake snorted at the randomness of her threat. He smirked, demeanor lighter as the atmosphere between the two of them became almost playful.  
"You're a kinky one aren't ya? I don't think I'd complain if you were the one to do the slapping," his smirk grew in exponential proportions as a dark blush colored Dawn's cheeks at his words.

Bella clapped her hands at that moment, sick of being left out of the loop. She poked Jake in the chest, "ok, let's stop the hormone fest for a second. What the hell just happened with Mike? Why'd you go all caveman when he touched Dawn?"

Jake snarled at the reminder and the two girls looked startled. He licked his lips, not knowing how to divulge what happened.

Dawn cocked her head as she looked between the two of them, "Yeah and what was up with that burst of magic?"

Bella and Jacob both turned to look at her, surprised Jake asked "What magic?"

Dawn motioned with her hands, "When we looked at each other, I could feel a burst of earth magic. Pretty intense," she grinned, "kind of like doing a triple espresso shot on an empty stomach."

Bella gasped as an idea began to form in her head, she turned to look at Jacob shocked "You imprinted?"

He flushed darkly and tried rubbing the back of his neck in an effort to buy himself some time.

Unfortunately Dawn seemed to catch Bella's little slip of the tongue, "What the hell do you mean by that?"

Bella crossed her arms as she smirked at him, waiting for Jake to explain the predicament he found himself in. An unknown teenage girl with a fiery temper definitely complicated things. At that moment, Jake wished that he was like Quil and had imprinted on a child- they were so much easier to deal with. If they grew up with you they would have no choices but to accept you as a part of their lives. Dawn though? Well, she looked like she was about to get violent if he didn't start sharing information soon.

He coughed self consciously, "Umm, I don't know about the shifters you know, but the Quilete wolves are different. We uh, we imprint on our soul mates."

Dawn backed off in a panicked stumble with both her palms raised up in the universal gesture of 'What the fuck?'

"Whoa whoa whoa! Soulmates? I'm suddenly starting to like this conversation less and less."

She crossed her arms and glared accusingly at Bella, "You know about this?"

Bella reached out to touch her, "Jake's my best friend Dawnie, he told me as soon as he became a werewolf. It's nothing bad, trust me."

Dawn shook her head resolutely, brunette locks swinging back and forth.

Bella pursed her lips and then sighed, "Dawn, I trusted you enough when you were threatening my friends with sharp weapons. Trust me on this."

Dawn glared at her, "I knew you were going to throw the axe thing back in my face!"  
She huffed in indignation, "besides it was Buffy that was doing the threatening."

Bella smiled, "You know what I mean."

"Yeah, yeah. You trusted me, I'll try to trust you." Dawn murmured as she ground the toe of her shoe into the asphalt.

Jake raised an eyebrow at the arguing brunettes "You threatened her friends with an axe? If it was the Cullens, then I'm kinda proud." He grinned.

Her head snapped back to him at his words, "Hey, what the hell was up with the magic burst? Don't think you're getting out of this so easily buddy! I want answers, and you'll tell me exactly what's meant by this imprinting business!" she ground out at Jacob, eyes flashing navy in her fury. Unfortunately he got a little distracted by how hot she looked when angry and didn't reply in the first couple of minutes after she asked him.

Worriedly Dawn poked Bella's side, she nodded at the glazed Jacob. "What's wrong with big and surly over there?"

Bella chortled amused at both her friends' expenses. Yeah she was still on the outs with Edward but this was so much fun to watch. She leaned to whisper in Dawn's ear, "Uh Dawnie, you know what being soul mates entails right? I think Jake's kinda picturing you naked at this moment."

Dawn looked at him startled and then back at Bella.

"And you're okay with that?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Bella asked her confused.

"Well, cause isn't there like a weird thing between the two of you?"

Bella smiled widely, "Oh Dawnie, Jake's my best friend, nothing more. We talked about everything and decided to stay friends, he knows I love Edward. Everything's cool."

Dawn's eyes widened and then her face turned absolutely blank. "Oh…" she turned away from them, shoulders hunched.

Bella and Jake turned to each other trying to gauge her reaction. Why did she react so weirdly to Bella's words?

Dawn swallowed, and turned around to look at the parking lot. Quickly her eyes stopped on the familiar red convertible and her sister coming closer to it. She looked back at Bella and Jacob who were waiting for her to say something. There was no expression on the usually passionate brunette's face, no sign that the news received made any impact on her.

Still looking at them, she began to back away.

"Dawn?" Jacob reached out to her tentatively.

"I can't, just let go of me" she muttered as she threw his hand off her and ran towards where her sister was waving at her.

Bella quickly glanced over at Jacob, she was sure that it must have been a trick of the light but for a moment she swore that she saw his eyes glisten with moisture at Dawn's refusal to even listen to the situation. She promised herself that she would do whatever was in her powers to make Dawn listen, she was used to the supernatural so then why did she freak out so badly over Bella's light hearted words?

A/N: Why *did* Dawn freak out so badly? Cause I'm pretty sure my Dawnie would have made a few choice sarcastic comments, maybe yelled at Jake or gotten slap happy with him if he pissed her off enough.  
What made her run back to her sister though?  
Any guesses hmm?

**14. Hi Eddy**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

Please review! I love you guys for sticking with the story, it means so much to me that you enjoy it and press that little button on the bottom to leave your opinion.

Buffy eyed her sister in trepidation, Dawn had slammed into the car, a whirlwind of angry energy that seemed to vibrate with suppressed emotions. She trailed her gaze as Dawn twisted around in her seat, but of course, she was looking back at Bella's truck. Buffy narrowed her gaze, a motorcycle stood beside it, a huge bronze skinned guy was gesturing wildly while Bella looked like she was trying to calm him down.

The blonde slayer raised an eyebrow in thought and turned to face her sister again, Dawn crossed her arms and huffed " I'll tell you in a minute, just start driving cause I sure as hell don't want to go all crazy Hulk on a rampage while the two lovebirds behind us are watching."

Buffy gently chided, "Language Dawnie," she paused, "and isn't Bella dating that really pale vamp kid?"

"She is, but apparently she and Jake," Dawn gestured at the direction where she came from, "they have a weird thing."

Buffy frowned trying to make sense of what her sister's reasoning for being angry was, "do *you* want to have a weird thing with him?"

Dawn scrunched up her nose and protested a little too vehemently "No! Just drive will you," she mumbled out and turned to stare blankly out the window.

Buffy shrugged and pulled out of the parking lot, making sure to take the other exit to the road so as not to pass by Bella and her 'thing' as Dawn so succinctly put it. She didn't know what was going on, she mused, but by the way her sister's brows were furrowed and the nervous twitch in her fingers- she was about to get a demonstration of the infamous Summers temper.

Her cell phone rang, the Nokia theme shattering the silence, Dawn turned to her pissed that her moment was getting interrupted and Buffy shrugged in apology as she glanced at the screen. Alice Cullen flashed and she sighed as she picked up.

"Whatsup Alice? Didn't we just see each other today?"

The vampire's tinkling laugh could be heard through the line.

"Yeah, but we're about to see each other again. Pull off in the clearing next to the Welcome to Forks sign, let Dawn do her thing and then come to our house. Edward'll come show you how to get here- he's in the area, he'll be there once she's done."

"Why?" Buffy eyed her sister thankful that she hadn't inherited her sense of hearing.

"Because if Dawn goes home right now she'll spend the next few days fuming about the situation with Bella and Jake, eventually she'll work herself up to the point where she won't be able to forgive Bella or give Jacob a chance. This can't happen Buffy, it will ruin everything."

"Did you see it?" Buffy carefully turned the car to the road leading out of town, Dawn raised an eyebrow in question and her sister lifted up a hand for her to wait.

"I did, there's a chance of it coming to pass, but these three should stick together. They'll be able to deal with things better in a group."

Buffy sighed, "He's going to meet us there?"

"Yup! Don't be late" and Alice hung up.

Dawn raised an inquiring eyebrow, "Hmm?"

The blond saw the clearing ahead of them and quietly stopped their car there.

"Come on, you're telling me what's the what with you today."

Dawn crossed her arms in front of her chest and pursed her lips, a hint of the bratty teen peeking through.

Buffy gently moved a strand of her hair behind her ear, "Dawnie, we promised each other in California. No more secrets, we're the only family we have left- I don't want a repeat of Sunnydale with you hating me."

The younger girl leaned into her big sister's touch, almost like a kitten clamoring for physical affection. "I never hated you Buff, I just didn't know how to talk to you. You're the most important person in my life, I'm not going to shut you out again."

Buffy gave her a gentle shove out of the car, "well then come on. You can rant and rage your little secret here and I promise that nobody will know just how crazy you really are." She winked at her sister's outraged sputtering and hopped out of her seat, carefully closing her baby's door so as not to damage the paint job.

She gave the still fuming inside the car Dawn a jaunty wave and grinned widely when her sister grumbled something to herself but came out to join her.

Buffy tapped the hood of the car as she leaned against it, "So come on grumpy Gus, tell me what's the happenings with my baby sister and who I have to kill and where should I bury the body?"

She stroked her chin in thought, "Maybe under the rosebushes? It'll be very cool in a very Edgar Allan Poe way, we'll have a corpse decomposing under our own shrubbery!"

Dawn wrinkled her nose "Kay, first of all- that's a major wig right there, what the hell've you been watching on tv?"  
Stepping beside her sister she rubbed the sides of her jeans, nervous energy practically radiating in waves off her. "And we're not burying bodies, it's a new town Buff- no killing of the residents."

Buffy hugged her with one arm, "Yet, no killing of the residents *yet*. Just say the word lil sis, and I'll get slay happy!"

Dawn laughed in spite of herself.

Her older sister's heart lightened, finally she'd gotten through to her and all it took was a few well worded threats. The usual Summers women way of making each other talk.

She squeezed the taller brunette tighter, "So, come on Dawnie, what's going on? What got you so upset?"

Dawn sighed as she studied her black Chucks intently, she brought her gaze up to meet her sister's and asked in return "did you know that I really thought for a while that we'd stop being fate's toys once we quit the Council?"

Buffy silently noted that Dawn didn't even blink at the fact that the 'we quit' the council came to her automatically, she supported Buffy's decision to cut those ties fully and it heartened her to this day to see her little sister back her up completely.

"Dawn, I'm not exactly sure where you're going with this…" she prompted her sister and really hoped that the creepy sparkly vampire kid wasn't hiding in the bushes listening to them talk.

Dawn took a couple of steps forward, bringing herself out of Buffy's embrace. She made a little circle in the dirt with her foot.

"I met a werewolf today," her voice was quiet.

Buffy raised an eyebrow but refrained from commenting.

Dawn continued, "yeah, didn't talk much to him before he imprinted on me."

Buffy choked, "Dawnie, I know you're a big girl- you're eighteen, but I don't want to hear about your kinky sexual things with guys you've just met!"

Dawn stared at her to gauge whether her sister was serious and just in case gave her a punch to the arm either way.

"You need to stop talking to Faith this often!"

Buffy laughed, Dawn's punch hadn't hurt her in the least but she rubbed her arm and moaned good naturedly. Her little play on her sister's conscience didn't work as the brunette just smirked widely and raised one very amused eyebrow. Buffy huffed as stopped pouting.

"So what's this imprinting business?"

Dawn's smile fell as she stared a little to the left of Buffy, the bushes rustled and briefly the Forks High School counselor wondered whether Edward was rolling around in the leafery from boredom. She shook her head, just cause she didn't like the kid was no reason to think he was some kind of perv with no manners.

Dawn cleared her throat, "I uh, I didn't actually stick around to listen for the full explanation. Cause you know, weird. Apparently, the werewolves here imprint on their soul mates. I think it's like instant love at first sight times ten what with the way Jake was looking at me."

Buffy gasped. She always knew that Dawn would be a heart breaker, but she figured that the younger girl would date around before finding her mate. And now it looked like she would be following her older sister's footsteps, Buffy was going to make sure that the guy wouldn't be the mistake that Angel was for her, she remembered being seventeen and thinking that he was her soul mate. And then getting her heart shattered when the reality of the matter intruded on her dreams. Dawn deserved better, she deserved real love and everything that would come with it.

She decided to find out more, "so why did you freak? Cause I'm pretty sure that a werewolf soul mate with our history would be nothing big."

Dawn shuffled her feet and again Buffy heard the rustling in the bushes. Goddamn! She was going to drag that kid out by his hair even if he decided to go all emo broodboy on them in the forest. She raised a finger in a 'one sec' gesture and stalked silently towards the sound of the noise. Just as she was about to part the bushes and impart an ass kicking on her vampiric cousin, a raccoon darted out startling both her and Dawn who crept behind her in curiosity.

"Geez Buff, what the hell?" Dawn exclaimed clutching a hand to her heart as she jumped back a good foot in the air.

Buffy smiled sheepishly and quickly dialed Alice's number.

A giggling voice answered her and Jasper's exasperated 'O come on!' could be heard through the line.

"I don't want to know what the two of you are up to, but uh- where's Eddy?"

Alice snorted at Buffy's nickname for her notoriously moody brother, "Edward's still at home, I figured I'd send him once you called me. I didn't want him to interrupt your talk with your sister," the vampire was full out laughing at her, probably having seen her bush-filled acrobatics in an earlier vision.  
"Did I forget to tell you? Ooops."

"Oh ha ha, wait until we reach your house. I've got a feeling that you and me have the same shoe size," Buffy threatened.

She was oddly disheartened to hear Alice begin chuckling again.

"I *knew* I was going like you in the family! We're going shopping with Rose this weekend, you just have to come with us!"

There was an obstinate silence from the slayer's end.

"Alright Buffy, Jazz is getting kind of impatient but uh- if you wanted my shoes, why didn't you just say so?" and Alice hung up.

Buff curled her lip at the silent phone as she stuffed it back in her jacket pocket.

Dawn was tapping her foot impatiently, "Kay what the hell? First you drag me out to some weird forest, then you give me a heart attack over a raccoon and now you're doing shoe threats again."

Buffy smiled apologetically, "Sorry, there was an issue. I'll tell you all about it later."

Dawn raised an eyebrow unamused, "Uh huh…"

Buffy linked their arms and walked her obstinate sister back to the hood of their car. Sitting them both down she asked her "So uh, before we got interrupted you were about to tell me all about the freaking and the anger with Bella."

Dawn sighed, "You know how long it took me to get over my whole jealousy of you phase right?"

Buffy hugged her, "Yeah I do, I thought we were past this?"

Dawn shook her head, "Oh no Buffy! This isn't about you, it's just, I guess that I thought I was over trying to compare myself to others. But, um. When Jake imprinted, I guess that I felt something for him too at that moment. Something pretty big. And uh, here's the problem. He used to be in love with Bella, in fact- up until a week ago he was pretty much still trying to steal her away from Edward. Now though? He was looking at me like I was the best thing in his life, like I was *The One* you know? I liked it, a lot. But I don't want somebody to settle for me cause some magical doohickey makes them, I want them to love me for me ya know? And I think that Jake's settling, cause he knows that he can't have Bella."

Her voice cracked and she angrily swiped a stray tear from her cheek, Buffy just stroked her sister's hair. She knew that matters of the heart were usually the most complicated and Dawn with her passionate nature was bound to feel emotions a lot more sharply than other people.

She silently waited for her little sister to calm down and continue.  
"I don't know what to do Buffy, it's me for God's sake! You're the one having these romantic dramas with the supernatural, I'm just the little sister!" Dawn angrily kicked a mound of dirt underneath their feet.

Buffy stood in front of her, she lifted her sister's head to meet her eyes. "Listen to me Dawnie, and get this through your thick scull once and for all- cause if you're the smart one in the family, what does that say about me?"

Dawn laughed, a water filled snort that was half sob half chuckle.

Buffy smiled at her gently, "Dawn, you're the kindest, warmest, most passionate woman I know. You're gorgeous, you have talent coming out the wazoo and you have the gift of making men shut up when they see you. You're loyal, like insanely so. Why wouldn't somebody love you? Who could resist the Summers charm?"

Dawn laughed, a brighter sound that reverberated through her sister's bones.

"If this imprinting thing's for real, then I think we should first find out what it really means. For you as well as for Jake, imagine how confused the poor kid feels, you ran out of there like hellhounds were chasing you!"

Buffy raised an eyebrow. "And Dawn Marie Summers, I've seen you face hellhounds. You took them on with a shotgun and didn't scream once. So you will *not* freak out about this, cause big sister's here. And we'll do this together, we'll find out what it means for you to be connected to him. Cause if there's a chance for you to have the kind of love that I missed out on, I won't let you run away just because you're scared!"

Dawn grinned widely and enveloped her tiny sister in a hug. They held each other tightly until Dawn, a lot more lighthearted than before commented "Oops, I think I got snot in your hair."

Buffy made a grossed out face as she pinched her dodging sister. "There's my gross little Dawnie," she said with affection and desperately tried to ascertain whether Dawn was serious.

"Just joking Buff, you know I'd never mess with the 'do." Dawn laughed as she put some distance between her sister and her.

The blonde made a mock fist in her direction, "You don't even joke about messing with the hair, cause missy- that's like asking for a whooping!" She reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone, quickly she typed in a text message to Alice to get Edward out of the house. If they needed to go see the Cullens then they'd do it, Buffy was smart enough to know not to question a seer. Especially one related to her. Blood or not, Alice annoyed her in that special way her other sibling had perfected over the years.

Dawn called out from near the trees where she picked a small, purple flower "A whooping? What are we, Texan now? You really have to work on your threats more, I think you're getting soft in your old age."

Buffy snorted and headed to join her, no matter how grey and dreary Forks was, the forest around the town was just amazingly gorgeous. It looked like it came straight from a Brothers Grimm fairytale, shadows and nature entwined in a mockery of anything the human mind could conceive.

"So who's coming to show us where the Cullens live?" Dawn called out from a bush she was busily trying to find some edible berries in. She had heard Buffy's side of the conversation earlier, plus she had been waiting to see how these vampires lived. She couldn't really picture elegant Esme and the always pristinely dressed Carlisle living somewhere like Spike's crypt back in Sunnydale.

"Eddy. I swear I've known vampires older than that kid and he's still the moodiest one I've ever met." Buffy shook her head.

"Yeah I know, you know how much fun it is to get on his nerves at school?" Dawn answered.

Buffy laughed, trust her sister to get her kicks from provoking a brooding vampire. She probably made a mistake somewhere with trusting two of the Scourge of Europe with babysitting little Dawn, but it ensured that she was rarely intimidated or scared. She was brought up on gruesome tales of murderous rampages across continents, nothing Edward with his whole 'I'm a monster' shtick could do or say was really shocking to Dawn.

Speak of the devil, Edward emerged from the trees, gaze serenely brooding as per usual, hair immaculately slicked up at an impossible ninety-degree angle and dressed in his usual black and grey gear.

Dawn straightened up from her fruitless pursuit of edibles and eyed him dubiously.

Buffy decided to be the adult and make an effort to like Edward. "Hey Eddy," she greeted him with a smile.

He grimaced at the new nickname, "It's Edward actually."

Dawn moved her way over to them. "Ed, we show our affection by giving people nicknames. Don't you want us to like you?" she cocked her head to one side as she studied him with wide blue eyes.

His gaze widened, "But you didn't give any of the others nicknames."

Dawn grinned and winked at him "It's cause you're special."

He eyed her entirely too innocent expression, "Fine."

"Great! Let's get moving then," Buffy clapped her hands and moved towards the car.

He sat in the front seat so as to be able to show the way to their house better, there was no way Buffy was letting him behind the wheel. Nobody drove her baby besides her and Dawn. Well Dawn usually drove the convertible after either spending the day sucking up, or bribing her sister with chocolate.

She pulled out of the clearing and Edward signaled the road to take. Buffy looked at him, he looked amazingly uncomfortable sitting in the car with them so she asked, "How are your parents?"

"Everybody's good, Esme's actually making a chocolate cake for you guys," he replied.

Dawn laughed from the backseat, "dude, she could be one of the coolest aunts we've ever had!"

Edward smiled tentatively at the brunette.

And then Dawn ruined the atmosphere in the car completely.

" *So* Ed, tell us now. When are you going to work things out with Bella? Cause I gotta tell you, I'm just dying to see whether you lighten up once you guys get back together."

**15. You sly dog you**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

"Kay, vamp or not, but I'm about to smack you," Dawn grimaced as she was stuffed into yet another pink outfit by Alice. She was damn sure that the pixie was purposefully trying to piss her off, there was no way in hell that she really thought these outfits were Dawn's style.

"I don't get off on violence Dawn, now hush and try this *really* cute necklace on!" Alice squealed in excitement and bounced off to retrieve the aforementioned necklace.

"It better be black, or spiky!" Dawn called out after her in the vain hopes of keeping her reputation intact.

Rosalie chuckled from the chair she was royally draped over. "I told you that she was worse than Buffy."

Dawn raised an eyebrow then threw her hands into the air, "how the hell was I supposed to know how much worse she was? I didn't think that anybody was worse than my sister when it came to shopping!"

Rose laughed and extricated herself from the plain mall chair that she managed to turn into a throne with her presence.  
"Hey it's okay, just tell her that you're getting hungry and she'll let us both go. Alice gets really guilty when she forgets that her human dolls have normal urges," the blonde grinned and then her eyes widened as she realized her slip of the tongue. Crap, Alice's other favorite doll was conspicuously absent from this shopping trip, Dawn's need to resolve the situation for herself first was on everyone's mind as they only invited the Summers sisters into Seattle.

Dawn frowned as she began idly browsing the row of neatly stacked Converse near the dressing rooms. The shoes, each a brighter color than the previous one were a welcome distraction from her thoughts. They had spent the previous day just hanging out with the Cullens, Buffy's awe at the house was funny to behold as they drove up. But throughout the whole experience, Dawn's thoughts were completely occupied by Jacob and by what this meant for her burgeoning friendship with Bella.

Rose silently placed back a pair of Chucks that Dawn was fingering with distracted intent.  
"You know you're going to have to talk to Bella soon right? She doesn't really deserve to have you so pissed off at her."

Dawn glanced back at her, "yeah I know, it's just I have my own issues to deal with too."

Rose smiled slightly, she was truly becoming fond of the fiery brunette, the other girl's temper was something truly to behold and Rose always did love people that stood up for their convictions.

Alice's excited jabbering grew louder and Dawn groaned as their own personal shopping nightmare bounced back into view clutching something purple with sequins.

"O come on Dawn, just try this one on! It'll be the last one I promise!" Alice grinned, enthusiasm infectious as Dawn dragged her weary body back into the dressing room.

The small, dark haired pixie came up to her much taller fair haired sibling.

"Do you think it's working?"

"I think so, she said she'll talk to Bella soon. I just can't believe that our little Dawn's soul mate is a wolf!" Rose grimaced in disgust. The Cullen and Quilete animosity was legendary.

Alice pinched her.

"Ow! What the hell?" it was more habit than anything that made Rose react.

"Shut up, there's worse people for Buffy's little sister to be linked to. He's loyal, he'll be good for her. Plus the two of them will be the bridge for us to finally put this stupid thing with the wolves behind us."

Rose eyed her skeptically, "I *really* hope you know what you're doing."

Alice didn't turn around to face her sister, "So do I" she said still looking at the dressing room in front of them to make sure Dawn didn't hear them.

Their human sibling came out, face disgruntled, hair gathered in a messy bun on top of her head and the new dress revealing more of her body than she had ever shown before. While still being sparkly and purple. Rosalie busted out in very loud, uncharacteristic guffaws.

Alice bounced on the balls of her feet, she spun Dawn to see her from all angles. Rosalie was still laughing loudly and the clerk at the front of the store began giving them the evil eye, Alice waved a friendly hand in her direction and called out "We're definitely taking the dress!"

Dawn raised an extremely angry eyebrow at the shorter vampire, "I think that you're a very sick puppy Alice."

Alice smiled serenely "I'll pay for the dress of course, and I'll give you a hundred bucks to wear it on an occasion of my choice."

Rosalie gave a very loud, unladylike snort behind them. Alice raised a one fingered salute to her sister's mirth.

Dawn crossed her arms and tapped her foot against the floor, "what kind of occasion?"

Alice grinned apologetically and spun Dawn around again, "Sorry hon, you don't get to find out ahead of time. I'll sweeten the pot and make it one fifty."

Rose straightened up from her laughing and began putting her hair back in order, "Oh God, that's the funniest thing I've seen in a long time. And I've been alive for almost a hundred years."

Dawn, still looking like a very pale hooker in the purple sequin dress blew a raspberry at Rosalie. "Where's my sister? Why isn't she enduring this humiliation too?"

Alice shrugged and Rose replied "she said something about slayer metabolism."

Dawn sighed "yeah she's probably at the food court."

"So did you decide on the dress?" Alice brought her back to their previous topic of discussion.

"Make it two hundred and I'll take the bet," Dawn bartered.

The sisters exchanged a glance that would have made the youngest Summers very uneasy had she caught it, as it was though, she was too busy trying not to throw up on her reflection at the store's mirrors.

"Deal," Alice nodded.

Buffy thoughtfully chewed on her pretzel, thinking back on their mall entrance she could have sworn that there was a hot dog cart outside. She glanced at her watch, the girls were probably still in the store, Alice's enthusiasm for all things retail was a truly scary sight to behold.

She gathered her bags and headed out, the desire to get some street meat making her exit the mall and head towards the brightly flapping little cart outside.

She paid at the vendor and loaded up on all the toppings. Putting mustard as a finishing touch on everything she prepared to enjoy herself thoroughly.

"Hungry I see," an amused male voice made her whip her head around. She smiled at the man she saw behind her, Charlie Swan. She wasn't prepared to go into reasons why but she had missed him for the last week, his gentle presence was beginning to be something she was looking forward to at the end of her day filled with overactive teenagers.

"Yeah, you know what they say about hot dogs!"

Charlie smiled slightly, "no actually I don't."

Buffy frowned and pouted "well, the only thing I know about hot dogs is kinda dirty and I haven't known you long enough to be making dirty jokes around you and now I'm babbling about dirty jokes, somebody stop me please!"

Charlie chuckled, a low rumbling sound that pleasantly warmed her insides.

"I'm looking forward to the day when you become comfortable with me, dirty jokes and all."

Buffy gasped in mock shock and fluttered a hand to her chest, "My my, aren't we bold today Chief Swan?"

Charlie smiled.

Buffy stepped away from the vendor, "so what are you doing at the Seattle mall? Is Bella here with you?" She kind of hoped that the girls made up sooner than later, she knew that Dawn's main issue was her insecurity with the whole situation, she didn't want them to lose their friendship over something that could be overcome by talking it out honestly.

Charlie shook his head, "No, Bella's tutoring Mike Newton today. I gotta say, I was really surprised that those two became friends. It seems to be another of Dawn's influences. I'm glad they're friends."

Buffy nodded, "me too."

"I'm here with my deputy, his niece's birthday is next week and he thinks that because I have a teenage daughter that I have an idea of what to get her."

He leaned closer into Buffy's personal space and she could smell the spicy aftershave on him. Trying to make it seem as inconspicuous as possible she inhaled the scent of his skin. Oh bad, bad Buffy. The yummy aftershave combined with the heat of his uniquely male scent did really screwy things with her hormones. She was kind of glad at that moment that Charlie was normal, he couldn't hear her escalating heartbeat, something that a vampire or werewolf would have no trouble deciphering.

They were heading towards a bench, Buffy smiled as Charlie wiped off the seat for her before she sat down. He did it without obvious intent, still telling her about his deputy and the niece who was hell to find presents for.

"So what are you doing here?" he asked her.

"Shopping with Dawnie, Rose and Alice," she bit off a piece of her hotdog.

Charlie raised an eyebrow and swallowed at her devouring a very intimate looking food in front of him. If he didn't know better having come across her putting toppings on her hot dog, then he'd think that she was deliberately teasing him. As it was though, she looked like she was just enjoying her food without realizing the perverted old man sitting next to her.

He went back to their conversation forcing himself to not look at her eating the hot dog. "Rose and Alice are the Cullen girls right?"

"Yup" Buffy nodded with her mouth full. Charlie smiled at her, it had been a long time since a woman felt comfortable enough to eat normally in his presence.

"I didn't know that you and Dawn were friendly with the Cullens."

Buffy paused in her eating, a thoughtful look in her hazel eyes. Having come to a decision, she resumed "they're family actually. Carlisle's my uncle, so the kids are like cousins."

"Oh," he didn't know why but he felt a huge weight lift off his chest at the fact that the Cullens had a connection to the outside world outside of his daughter. He knew that Bella was dating Edward, but it made him feel much more secure to know that they had cousins. That they went to the mall with their cousins.

He cleared his throat, "Listen Buffy, uh… I was wondering whether…" A loud trill from his cell phone interrupted him. Ned's frantic voice babbling something about Hello Kitty and Bratz intruded on his careful plan to ask her out before she got consumed with her life outside of him again.

He stood up, "Listen I've gotta go, poor guy really needs me- I think he's having a nervous breakdown in Toys R Us. I doubt that his fifteen year old niece would appreciate him getting her a doll," he smiled ruefully.

Buffy stood up, having put her hot dog on the napkins provided, she casually stuffed her hands into her jean pockets. She stepped closer to him.

Charlie swallowed heavily, what was she doing? The signals she was sending with her actions definitely screamed that she was interested. Whoa, did she just sniff him? Buffy closed her eyes as she leaned closer, once her face was two inches away from his neck she did this slow little inhale that had Charlie holding his breath so as not to do something he would later be arrested for. Somehow that little action sent all his senses into overdrive, it felt like all the little hairs on his skin were standing up in tandem screaming for him to touch her. She softly trailed her fingertips on his shirt leaving a blazing hot trail seeping into his skin.

"What are you doing?" his voice was hoarse, the timeless ritual of a female seducing her chosen mate was not lost on his instincts even if his more logical mind refused to admit that this was really happening.

"I'm just saying bye Charlie… At least until the next time I see you," she smiled softly as she gazed up to meet his dilated pupils. Buffy licked her lips and Charlie's breath hitched in anticipation. She stood on her toes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek and damn was that a disappointment.

She giggled as she rubbed her lip, "Your mustache scratches."

Charlie stood still, silent, not knowing what to say and not trusting his voice not to crack like an adolescent's.

Buffy picked up her big and dumped the rest of her hot dog in the trash, she grinned an impish smile and gave him a saucy wink "I'll see you soon Charlie Swan," and she walked away back towards the mall entrance.

His brain was yelling at him to wake up and run after the retreating blond but his feet and other parts of his physiology had their own ideas and were currently doing very interesting things. He cocked an eyebrow and gave a very un-Charlie like smirk as his eyes followed the blonde. Maybe he wasn't the old man that he thought he was, maybe there was still hope for him left.

That evening, after following Ned for hours and finally making him see reason and buy a simple silver charm bracelet, Charlie opened the bottle of Scotch he had stashed in his office. After pouring himself two fingers of the amber liquid he set the bottle down and slowly climbed the stairs to the small washroom across from the attic . He considered his reflection in the mirror, thirty six years old- still a man in his prime. After Renee left him he had given up on women, half convinced that he wasn't worth sticking around for and half afraid of getting his heart broken again. Now though? Charlie was beginning to see the possibilities that the future held, and one possibility definitely looked like a sharp witted tiny blonde with a penchant for making him feel terrifying emotions.

He slowly picked up the razor and went to work on the mustache. It was time to change.

**16. Love and Basketball**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

"Buff, I'm heading to the playground on Parklane!" Dawn yelled out to her sister.

"Hold on a sec missy!" her sister called back and Dawn huffed as she cradled the basketball to her side and waited for Buffy to show.

The small blonde was prompt, wearing green sweats and a white wifebeater she looked homey and younger than her twenty five years. She had her hair tucked on top of her head, secured only by a bright pink gel pen of Dawn's.

"Are you going by yourself?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.

Dawn rolled her eyes "Yes mien Fuhrer, I'm just going to work off some energy."

Buffy frowned concerned, "you still haven't talked to Bella?"

Dawn stuck her tongue out, admittedly immature but she was tired of her sister questioning her on when she was going to get her little situation resolved.

"I'm going to talk to her in school tomorrow I promise, I just need to run off the adrenaline," Dawn impatiently shifted the ball from one hand to the other.

Buffy nodded and then grinned, "I still don't see why you didn't try out for the basketball team, God knows your height would guarantee you a spot on the team."

Dawn scowled "Do I look like the athletic type? Besides, me in those knee length brightly colored synthetic shorts? Are ya seriously kidding me?"

She opened the door and began heading out.

Her sister laughed, "Alright your fashion highness, go work off your teenage hormones. Though I still support say Faith when she says you just need a boyfriend."

Dawn turned back and gave her sister an evil smirk, "Speaking of boyfriends, whats the what with you and Bella's dad? I never thought you'd be into the whole small town man thing. And yet here you are crushing on police Chief Swan!"

At Buffy's outraged sputtering she laughed and quickly skipped away from her sister's slayer reach, though the pen previously holding up Buffy's hair did manage to smack her in the back of her head as she left.

Dawn ran a lay up, the ball's reassuring bounce slowly threading the nervous energy away from her. David Guetta's Sexy Bitch pounded in her headphones as she picked up speed, her long hair in a ponytail she was using to keep the sweat away from her. Stopping for a second, she looked around and saw nobody. She gulped down a drink of her water and pulled off her damp t-shirt thankful that nobody was there to see her run around in her favorite black sports bra. She turned up the sound and let the music wash over her as she got back to the court and to erasing her thoughts about what the day ahead of her might bring.

Jacob gulped, maybe, just maybe it was a bad idea to stand at the edge of the clearing and watch his soul mate run around by herself wearing only a little sports bra and black shorts. Sweat was glistening on her pale skin, the dark ponytail bounced from side to side as she handled the basketball with obvious experience.

He really didn't want to be the kind of guy that had to resort to stalking the girl he liked, but as of right now? That was his only option. The imprinting was very new, and Dawn still hadn't given neither Bella nor him a chance to explain what was going on. At this moment though, every fiber of his being needed to be near her, he craved her presence like a man dying of thirst longs for a drink of water.

He cocked his head, was that a tattoo he could see emerging from her shorts and going up to her hip? His body's reaction to the thought of where her tattoo started told him much more than he needed to know about their particular case of imprinting. He knew that others in his tribe had imprinted before, the bond making the wolf become whatever their intended needed. Their brother, their best friend, their loyal protector. With Jacob though? He didn't know anything about Dawn Summers beyond what Bella could tell him and he was ass backwards, head over heels in love with the girl in front of him. Nothing brotherly here.

He took a deep breath and began walking towards her.

Dawn grinned as ATB's Marrakech started playing, the song always reminded her a little of Faith. She spun in a complicated maneuver that would have made the Forks High basketball couch salivate with the thought of her on their team, and caught sight of the subject of her thoughts standing not ten steps away from her.

"Holy fuck! Don't do that!" she ripped off the earphones as her heart rate jackknifed into the two hundreds. She pointed one finger at him, "if I get a heart attack before I turn twenty, my sister will totally kill you."

He smirked that totally sexy little half smile of his, not that Dawn was noticing or anything, and crossed his arms "I didn't mean to scare you."

Dawn put the basketball down beside her feet, "Well what did you mean to do? And oh my God where did you come from? Did you just come from the woods?"

She raised a suspicion laced eyebrow at him and he dared to laugh at her scary glower, "yeah, cause werewolves can't use the road or anything right Dawn?"

The sweaty brunette immediately backtracked, whatever her issues with him, his being a shifter had nothing to do with the whole thing. "Jake, I don't care that you're a werewolf. My sister's best friend dated one for three years, he used to babysit me when I was little." Her heart squeezed in the painful reminder that she was wrong, Willow wasn't Buffy's best friend anymore.

Jake snickered, "Trust me, babysitting's the last thing on my mind when it comes to you."

Dawn glared at him and even though her insides melted in that pleasant puddle she turned into around him, she still protested "Hey perv boy, we won't be doing anything that's on your mind."

He raised an eyebrow at her, luscious lips still twisted into that damnable smirk that was like a lethal weapon purely to be used against the youngest Summers.  
"Are you sure?"

"What do you mean am I sure? Of course I'm sure! I don't know what you're used to, little love triangles with vampires nonetheless, but not everybody that you meet immediately wants to jump your bones!"

Something flashed in his eyes, and Dawn backed away a step. He reached out and gripped her arm, "Dawn, the thing with Bella? It was a dumb reason for me to justify my dislike of the leeches. Yeah, I had feelings for her. But you? You're everything to me, you're the only person in my world that really matters. Bella's my best friend, but if it means that I won't see you again- I'll give her up."

Her heart felt like it was about to tear out of her chest and slam into his waiting hands, she nervously licked her lips and gestured down to where he was still holding her by the arm.  
"Let go Jake."

Hurt flickered across his features and Dawn immediately felt like shit. He clutched his hands at his sides, "You don't need to be afraid of me, I'd never do anything to hurt you."

His gaze turned towards the ground and Dawn couldn't help herself, some instinct, some desire, some foolish need propelled her to come as close to him as she dared. She lifted his chin to look at her, "I'm not afraid of you Jacob Black, you scare the shit out of me. But for reasons I'm not really ready to go into."

The air between them changed drastically, it felt like the atmosphere was on fire as his whiskey colored eyes gazed into her sky blue ones. It was like he was pulling out everything Dawn was and could be for him to examine; she felt like gasping out, her soul was laid bare for him to see everything. The klepto stage, the love and loyalty for Buffy, the fear for her sister's life, the insecurity about her place in the world, everything.

"You will be," he whispered and touched his lips to hers. And oh Gods above, it was like magic being poured into her pores, electricity dancing at their point of contact binding them closer and closer together. Gently he opened her mouth with his tongue, and hooo boy, this was it. This was what made Buffy take stupid risks for really unsuitable guys, this was what you died for. This was what you killed for. This. Was. Everything.

He stepped away first, pupils dilated, eyes black with desire, love, emotions swirling together.

Dawn looked at him silently, fingers touching her mouth as if to preserve the memory of his lips on hers.

She took a deep breath, and another one to clear her head. Just then she noticed that she was still standing with him wearing only her sports bra and itty bitty shorts that Buffy absolutely hated. She whirled around to pick up her t-shirt and pulled it over her head. She silently began to put her stuff back into her backpack that she came with, water bottle, cell phone, banana. All the while her mind whirled in a million different thoughts, what the hell could she say after a kiss like that?

Dawn turned back to face him and Jacob cocked an eyebrow at the picture on her shirt. It was Stewie holding a martini glass with the bright pink lettering proudly proclaiming to the world that it was time for a sexy party. He snorted.

"Hey! It's my favorite workout shirt, don't knock Family Guy buddy!"

Jake held up his palms in supplication "Me? Never, I'm just the silent guy here. Not saying anything." He grinned.

Dawn nodded her head that he had permission to live a few moments longer, her sweaty post-workout appearance doing nothing to distract from her mock haughtiness. Jake smiled.

"Listen, you said that you have elders in your tribe right?"

Jake started, the switch in conversation threw him for a loop.

"Uh yeah, why?"

The brunette in front of him took a deep breath and declared proudly, "Cause I'm a Summers girl. And Summers girls don't run from shit we don't know. We find out everything there is to know about the unknown and more often than not we kill it."

Jake felt a bit worried for a second, was this a threat?

Dawn continued, an evil glint in her eye.

"I'm just saying, you should keep this in mind for the future. Don't piss me off cause I can pretty much guarantee that you won't like the consequences. Now back to the topic. I think that me and Buffy should come see somebody knowledgeable about the imprinting, somebody that knows more than you. And shush! I'm sure that you don't have all the info. So we'll come and talk to them, and if this is real. If this isn't some weird magic making you feel this way…"

She paused and bit her lip.

Jake stared at her intently; Bella had told him that Dawn and her sister were aware of the supernatural. She hadn't gone into details claiming that it was up to the Summers sisters to tell him everything if they chose to do so. But now Dawn was apparently thinking that the imprinting was forcing his feelings for her and frankly it terrified the shit out of him. He had only known her for a little more than a week and already he couldn't imagine his life without her. She looked so uncertain, fragile and expecting to be broken. Even with her height he found that he felt the intense desire to protect her from everything that could have the possibility of hurting her.

"Dawn this is real, shifters in my tribe have imprinted for thousands of years. This," he took her hand and held it to where his heart was, "this is forever."

Her eyes shone with unshed tears, she gingerly squeezed his hand and took a step back. "Then I'll see you soon Jacob Black."

And as he watched her walk away from him, even with the knowledge that she had feelings for him too, even with the knowledge that he'd see her again- Jake felt the loneliest he had ever been in his life.

**17. Cousin Ed**

Disclaimers on Ch.1 I still don't own Twilight, and I still don't own Buffy. Meyer and Whedon do.

Victoria stood on a branch in the forest surrounding Forks. The raindrops splattered against her skin, turning fire colored hair into a blood-like mess of tangles down her back. She didn't blink as she thought of her next steps. Trying to make sense of the confusion overlaying her plans, trying to find some way of finally getting rid of that stupid human. Bella Swan had to die, her death would finally wash the bitter taste of James's demise from her mouth. The wolves still took turns guarding her house perimeter, despite that Black kid imprinting on the new girl. Victoria's source had told her about the estrangement between Bella and Edward, she had expected that the girl would automatically run to her little dog but she never could have foreseen that he would have fallen for Dawn Summers. She had thought that this would make it even easier for her to finally do away with Bella, no more of the Cullen abominations following her around like her personal bodyguards, no more dog doing her bidding- but Victoria hadn't counted on Jake staying friends with Bella. He and his tribe still protected her.

It didn't matter though, because now Victoria knew what to do. She had seen the Summers sisters become close to the Cullen family, she saw them visit at least twice a week, accompanying each other on little excursions to the big towns, Victoria following them in a haze of red tinted fury.

The Cullens screwed up by letting not one but three humans close to them, her source told her that all three knew about them being vampires.

Long ago, back when Victoria was still a fledgling, she had heard of the Volturri. The terrible upholders of vampire law, they would kill any human that knew of the vampire world. Victoria would go to them, they were her last resort. Whatever she was- she was never stupid, with James dead and Laurent off on his own she knew that she needed help. And who better to ask for help than the only ones who could fully destroy the whole Cullen family?

Buffy threw the tennis ball in the air and caught it with one hand, keeping an eye on her door to make sure that nobody would see the guidance counselor slacking off. She grinned as she performed an especially complicated maneuver using the lampshade and the ball, slayer abilities had to count for something and amusing herself was definitely a perk of not having to work in the same office as the principal.

"I see you're really setting a good example for the kids," Charlie stood in the doorway, one hand behind his back.

The tennis ball rebounded off the wall and crashed into a vase flinging onto the ground.

"Crap," Buffy grimaced as she stood up to clean the shards. She spared a quick smile for Charlie, "what are you doing here? Is Bella in trouble?"

He fidgeted and motioned with his free hand, "came to see you actually."

Buffy finished dumping all the vase shards into the trashcan beside her table, she straightened up with her usual feline grace and raised an amused eyebrow at Charlie. She slowly slinked up to him, soft fingers trailing over his face. "You shaved your mustache," she commented softly and smiled.

Charlie's breath caught, "it seemed like it was time to get rid of it."

Buffy stood back to admire the overall effect, "I like it, it suits you" she proclaimed.

He let out a small breath that he didn't realize he was holding, "I'm glad."

The small blonde grinned at him as she leaned against her table, "so what's going on? Not that I'm not happy to just have you visit me," she winked.

Charlie licked his lips and brought the hand that he had behind him out to her. Five bright yellow daffodils were gathered together with a plain string, their intense color instantly standing out against his police uniform.

Buffy gasped as she reached for them, "Okay, this may totally be infringing on your man credentials but- how'd you get daffodils in November Washington?"

Charlie chuckled "I've got to keep some mysteries with you."

He smiled and handed over the flowers to her, "they actually remind me of you."

She sniffed the delicate scent of the flowers "oh yeah? How's that?"

"They brighten up the room," he murmured.

Buffy smiled at him as she took the flowers, she had known lots of charmers in her years as a slayer but Charlie was in a league of his own. Quiet, shy, with a fierce loyalty towards his daughter he was like a breath of fresh air in an atmosphere so dominated by strong personalities. He didn't need Buffy to be the slayer, he didn't need her to solve his problems, he just liked her. Buffy Anne Summers, twenty five year old guidance counselor at Forks High School.

"You're a good man Charlie," she commented as she searched the room for a new vase. Maybe she could steal one from the crotchety secretary?

He gave a cough behind her, "Buffy?"

"Yeah?"

He took three strides in her direction, one hand splayed against the base of her spine as he drew her close to him. Buffy sucked in a breath at the uncharacteristically bold move.

"Have dinner with me?"

She looked at him, trying to discern whether he would be yet another notch in her long list of heartbreaks. He stood so close to her that she could still smell the cinnamon on his breath; she remembered that he had a fondness for Big Red gum. He had become lighter somehow in the last couple of months, he no longer felt like he was trying to close himself to the world. She saw the nervousness enter his dark hazel eyes, she had stayed silent as she examined him and he was getting worried with her lack of an answer.

Buffy smiled, she wanted to get to know him. Despite her history of getting hurt every time she opened her heart she *really* wanted to know who he was.

"I'd like that," and she kissed him again. Buffy always did like the taste of cinnamon.

Dawn sat huddled on the bench behind the high school, she had a free period for her last class and she had just texted Bella to meet her. It was time to talk, time for Dawnie to put on her big girl pants and just admit to being insecure and jealous. It had just stopped raining, the air was still damp with a faint tang of ozone tickling the senses. She could smell the grass, clean after the downpour it soothed her senses. She huddled deeper into her favorite gray skull hoodie, long legs enveloped in tight skinny jeans and combat boots over them. Dawn shivered, lost in her thoughts of the day before, the kiss with Jake, the electricity between them. She had come home to a giggling Buffy, just having gotten off the phone with Faith her sister didn't notice her quietness for the rest of the day. She knew that she would have to talk to her about going to see Jake's elder, the sooner they got the information on imprinting the better. She wanted to know what the deal was with her feeling a burst of natural magic when she saw Jake, after Sunnydale she had always been sensitive to magic. Buffy had worked a couple of times with a wicca coven in San Diego, they had seen that Dawn had an aptitude for magic and offered to teach her. She had done a few small things, but nothing too big, her deep seated fear of turning into Willow on a magic binge colored her actions with extreme caution.

Bella's soft voice jarred her out of her musings.  
"A quarter for your thoughts," she murmured.

Dawn started as her gaze came into focus on Bella's tattered Chucks, she smiled at the smaller girl.

"My thoughts are worth at least a dollar," she paused, "preferably one of the old timey, shiny ones."

Bella snorted.

Dawn patted the seat beside her, "sit."

Bella stuck her hands in the pockets of her jacket as she flopped in her usual slightly clumsy manner.

Dawn turned to her, tucking one leg under the other she looked into Bella's face.

"Bells I'm sorry about what happened," she began fiddling with the silver trinity ring Buffy had gotten gotten her for her eighteenth birthday. A nervous habit that seemed to pop up at the strangest times.

Bella vehemently shook her head, "Oh no Dawnie, why should you be the one to apologize? I spring this thing on you and no wonder you freaked. Plus Jake isn't the most diplomatic person ever," she chuckled.

Dawn blushed, "umm yeah, I saw him yesterday."

"Ooo did'ya now? What happened?"

Dawn changed the finger that the ring went on, Bella watched her fiddle.

"We kissed…"

Bella smiled widely and a part of Dawn that she didn't even know was wary let out a huge breath of relief.

"How was it?"

Dawn grinned and did the best nonchalant shrug she could, "eh, I've had better."

Bella started laughing, "oh yeah, that's why you're turning red!"

Dawn snorted as she was forced to acknowledge that ever since they started on the subject of her yesterday's kiss, she felt like her skin was on fire, insides liquefying at the terrifying yet exciting thought about repeating the experience.  
She bit her lip as she broached the subject of why she had freaked out on the both of them.

"Listen Bells, I need you to know why I ran away." Dawn ran a hand through her long hair, Bella looking at her intently just did not take away any pressure from the situation.  
"I was jealous of you and Jake, I know that he had feelings for you and I didn't want him to only want to be with me because of some wolfy imprinting."

Bella shook her head in exasperation, "Dawn, this is probably my fault for giving you the idea in the first place. For Jake's people, an imprinting is everything that love should be. It's forever, it's eternal, it knows no boundaries. You guys are forever connected, whatever crush he had on me means nothing. You know that right?"

Dawn nodded silently, and Bella sniffed as she pulled the brunette into a tight hug.  
"I swear for being such a badass you're so dumb sometimes Dawnie."

Dawn gave a teary laugh as she hugged her back.

The girls held on a moment and then let go of each other, Dawn wiped her eyes before her mascara had a chance to run.

She settled more comfortably on the bench as she asked her friend "so have you made up with Broody junior yet?"

"Why Broody junior?"

"Cause Angel has the market monopolized on being the king of brooding vampires, though Eddy does come close," Dawn grinned. "You should talk to Buffy sometime about dating a vampire, God knows she has the experience."

Bella gaped, "you sister's dated vampires before? Isn't that kind of against the job description?"

Dawn gave a one shouldered shrug, "yeah, Buff's never been one for following instructions to the T. Don't change the subject though, what's going on with you and my undead cuz?" She rolled her eyes, "I know my life is weird when having vampire cousins doesn't do anything to freak me out."

Bella snickered at that, their lives were definitely strange. She sobered up as she thought about the situation with her boyfriend. He was still playing the avoiding game with her, all the Cullens looked at her with something close to pity when she cornered them about his continued absences from school. Emmett had pulled her aside and told her that Edward had gotten Esme to call the vice principal to excuse him from school due to illness, it seemed he had come down with a case of fake pneumonia. Bella knew that they needed to have a big talk, she was sick and tired of being the one waiting for Edward's constant decision making in their relationship. She knew what she was getting into when she began dating a vampire and she was willing to accept the consequences of her actions. This limbo that he had put her in, it was slowly killing her, sucking the breath out of her every day in an endless spiral of despair.

"I'm putting a stop to this," Bella said.

Dawn blinked in surprise, "you're dumping his sorry ass?"

Bella smiled sadly, "nah, I'm still a sucker, still in love with him. I'm not going to be able to be the first one to walk away Dawnie," she glanced at her nails "I'm giving him an ultimatum, either he gets over his big vampire-macho over protectiveness and starts treating me like an equal partner in this relationship, or he needs to break up with me. I can't take this anymore, living in this state is killing me."

Dawn took her hand in a show of support.

"It's like there's a hole in my chest, and every day that he doesn't say anything about us, it grows bigger. It hurts to breathe, I haven't been able to sleep properly for a month." Bella's voice cracked as she started crying, Dawn pulled her into a hug as the brokenhearted girl began sobbing, pain etched into her features.

Eventually Bella calmed down, little hiccups coming in random intervals as she struggled to get her breathing under control. Dawn handed her a packet of tissues from her bag.

"I don't know why you put up with his bullshit Bells," Dawn softly commented.

Bella laughed, a broken hollow sound echoing in the emptiness around them.  
"Don't you think I know that? I wish I was strong like you, or Buffy. I'm not, I'm weak, I'm just clumsy Bella who can't be trusted to make decisions about her own life." Bitterness laced her words and Dawn vowed to knock some sense into her spiky haired cousin next time she saw him.

"But despite everything, even with his mood swings- I'm still crazy in love with him. Because what you see right now Dawnie? This is the bad, and you know how bad it is. But… When it's good," Bella paused and a small smile flitted on her lips, "when it's good, it's fucking unbelievable."

Dawn laughed at her friend's swearing, "you're getting quite a potty mouth on you Miss Swan. I don't want to know what kind of influence your dad thinks I've been having on you."

"Oh please, dad's just happy that I'm making friends with somebody not related to Edward," Bella scoffed. She grinned wickedly, "besides, I think he's been pretty busy with mooning over your sister lately."

Dawn nodded, "yeah, it's kinda sickening seeing them together."

She stood up and picked up her bag, "come on, you're coming to my house to watch some cheesy sitcoms. I think we have triple chocolate chip cookies somewhere," she motioned for Bella to rise.

As they began to walk towards the parking lot Dawn commented, "if you guys get back together, you know you absolutely *have to* give Eddy a hard time right? You want him to suffer for being such a big jerk."

Bella grinned, " oh yeah, he's not just going to get away with putting me through this crap for two months with no repercussions," she bit her lips, " *if* we get back together that is."

Dawn playfully punched Bella's shoulder, "hell yeah you will. I've never seen a guy brood so much over somebody that he wasn't in love with," she grinned, "and I lived through all of Buffy's relationships."

Bella laughed as she followed Dawn, a sudden thought occurred to her "hey Dawn? If Charlie and Buffy end up getting married, will that make us stepsisters?"

Dawn stopped in contemplation, she shrugged "I don't know actually, but it'll mean that Buffy'll be your stepmom."

Bella began laughing at the thought of her leather wearing, speed demon, absolutely irreverent guidance counselor becoming her step-mother.

Dawn continued, "Besides, if those two ever become serious- we can always make fun of the possibility of her becoming Buffy Swan."

The girls stared at each other as the utter ridiculousness of the name was sounded out loud. They began laughing loudly, Buffy Swan definitely sounded like a bad porn name.

**18. First date**

Disclaimers on Ch1.

Please review! Pretty please with a cherry on top?

Charlie rang the doorbell to the Summers home, he smiled as he heard Dawn yell out a frenzied "Just a second!" before there was a sound of glass breaking and an exclamation of some really surprising profanity. He had a teenage daughter so he settled in for a wait, looking around their front porch he chuckled at the obvious signs of the homeowners' temperaments. There was a little circle made out of cactuses by the sunnier part of the porch, a huge wind chime hung from the center under which he currently stood. A little to the left of the house a hammock was strung up between two trees, a large book lay forgotten beside it. A couple of bushes sat near the fence with the next door neighbors, he cocked an eyebrow as he saw the laminated pink sign hanging by two hooks that read 'Welcome to Neverland.' He guessed that was Dawn's weird sense of humor at play here.

The door swung open and the youngest Summers stood there, she beckoned him in silently and smiled as he crossed the doorway. He was curious as he took in their house, never having been here before Charlie was eager to see where Buffy and her little sister lived. As he walked in he found himself standing immediately to the right of a large family room, a huge blue and purple sofa took up space next to the coffee table littered with books. The room was painted a calming beige-green, which Charlie would have known to call olive had he been a little more metropolitan. There was an entertainment unit with a large television, it had shelves filled with different sculptures and assorted collectibles, flowers filled every available surface. Charlie walked closer to the wall as he saw several pictures hanging up there, an obvious effort to know more about the Summers girls. He gestured to Dawn who was watching him with a blank look in her eyes, if he could take a look at the pictures.

"Go right ahead, Buffy's just getting dressed," she shrugged.

Charlie smiled at her and began his perusal. Most of these pictures had either Buffy or Dawn in them with different people, some were just stand alones with young men and women smiling and waving to the audience at large. He saw a picture of a brunette about Buffy's age cuddling with a tall black man on stairs; they looked happily in love, emotions on the surface for the world to see. The cop part of him was surprised to see that the brunette who was wearing leather and had a couple of visible tattoos was so obviously comfortable with a partner who looked to be upper middle class. He frowned as he saw the same look in both their eyes, love for each other and a weariness he had seen on police exchange programs with the big cities.

The next picture was of Buffy and Dawn hugging and laughing in front of a large building, the sign on top of it called it Sunnydale High School.

"That was our old hometown," Dawn softly commented beside him. Her eyes seemed luminous as they drank in the photographs of her past. "It's gone," she whispered.

Charlie didn't press further, not being a big talker usually meant that he felt no urge to intrude on private thoughts that would lead to pain.

The next picture was of a pretty brown haired woman, she had a soft smile as she stood behind a kitchen counter oven mitt on one hand while she pointed at the camera with a spatula.  
"That's our mom," Dawn traced a finger on the woman's face, longing evident in the gesture.

"She's beautiful," Charlie said as he watched the teenager. He knew that it was just Buffy and Dawn left of their family, it looked like their mother was a wonderful woman and the sisters still missed her sorely.

"Yeah, mommy was gorgeous. I got her looks," Dawn winked and chuckled as a tear slid down her cheek.

"I'm sorry to upset you, I didn't mean to- she looked like a great mom," Charlie hurriedly said. Crying women were always a weakness of his, and crying female teenagers terrified him more than crying female adults.

"Don't freak Charlie, I'm not going to go all hysterical and ruin your first date with my sister," Dawn grinned even as her eyes told a different story.

"Dawn, I want you to know that I really like your sister. I want to find out where this could go with her, but I promise not to do anything that would make you uncomfortable," Charlie shuffled his feet and stuck his hands into the side pockets of his scuffed jeans.

The brunette who was only a couple of inches shorter than him looked shocked, " huh. So if I say that I don't want you dating my sister, would you leave her alone?" she tilted her head.

Charlie carefully considered the question before answering, "yes I would. I know it's just the two of you, and I trust that you would do whatever you believed necessary to protect your sister. Besides, I wouldn't want to stand between you," he shrugged his shoulders.

Slowly Dawn's smile grew from a twitch of the lips into a full on grin that lit up her face, "that's a pretty cool thing to say mister Swan."

"Come, I have cookies and milk while you wait for Buffy to come down." She gestured for him to follow her into the open space kitchen, it had red checkered curtains on big windows and was decorated with an assortment of styles.

"Do you want tea or coffee while you wait?" she opened one of the cupboards and gestured to the impressive assortment of various caffeinated beverages.

Charlie shook his head and took a seat behind the counter.

Dawn slid him a plate full of cookies and took one for herself.

"So why were you upset? Did something happen today?" he asked her, it bothered him to see Bella's best friend in an uncharacteristically subdued mood. He genuinely liked Dawn, she had spunk and personality to share- she brought his daughter out of her shell plus she was just plain fun. She and her sister radiated warmth and welcome and Charlie was damned if he would sit and not do anything to cheer her up.

Dawn chewed her cookie as she eyed him thoughtfully, "nah, nothing big happened. I guess it's just that I was getting sad about it being just me and Buffy," her voice dropped, "I get lonely sometimes, I really miss my mom."

"Oh Dawn…" Charlie murmured, he didn't know what to do. He didn't know Dawn all that well, and he knew for sure that it would be weird if he hugged her.

Some of his awkwardness probably translated into his body language as Dawn suddenly changed gears, "well, enough of ol' mopey over here. What do you guys have planned for tonight?"

Charlie looked pleased with himself, "a dinner and stargazing. There's a really great little restaurant about a half hours drive outside of town and I was planning to take Buffy to the planetarium that just opened."

Dawn winked, "swanky without being skanky. I approve."

She looked up the stairs and turned back to face him, face serious all of a sudden. "Alright Charlie I like you. And I know that you're aware of the fact that it's just me and Buffy in Forks. But I'm warning you right now, if you do anything to hurt my sister- I don't care whether you're a cop or not, I *will* hunt you down and beat you to death with a shovel."

Charlie blinked unsettled by the surprising threat, he *had* to know though "why a shovel?"

Dawn answered as she counted on her fingers all the reasons why it would be more efficient to kill him with a shovel, "one- nobody expects a shovel to be used as a weapon. Two, you can keep hurting somebody in a number of surprising ways with a shovel. And three, easy peasy clean up."

She winked as she patted his hand, "I'm sure you won't do anything stupid to deserve a good shovel beating."

Charlie swallowed his cookie before he had a chance to choke on it, the teen looked absolutely delighted as she took in his shock.

There was a sound on the stairs and he got up from his chair for his date, "thanks for the cookies, they were delicious."

There was a gleam in her eyes as she replied, "I'm glad you liked them. Bella baked them the other day."

Charlie chuckled, Dawn certainly was never boring.

He stepped out to see Buffy descend, a beautiful pink dress with a grey shawl on her shoulders complimented her blond hair perfectly. She looked gorgeous and she smiled widely as she took in his outfit. Charlie was suddenly glad that he went through the humiliation of letting Bella dress him for the date. She gave him a peck on the cheek as he took his car keys off the coffee table.

Buffy turned to her sister, "what are you up to tonight?"

Dawn looked thoughtful as she tapped a finger against her lips, "I don't really know, probably will just hang out, order some pizza and watch old cheesy movies on tv."

The blonde tucked a strand of Dawn's hair behind her ear, "are you sure you don't want me to stay home? Cause I will, Charlie's cool- he'll get it."

Charlie stood a little to the side as he saw Dawn shake her head and Buffy lean in to give her little sister a fierce hug. He knew that they were closer than most sisters, the fact of the matter was that Buffy had raised Dawn. And now Buffy's younger sister was feeling lonely and sad. It was a terrible thing losing both parents, but the sisters had always leaned on each other for support. They lived every moment of their lives together and suddenly Charlie realized what he had to do.

He put a hand on Buffy's shoulder, "hey Buffy? What do you think of making our date an indoor picnic sort of thing? We can order in and I'm pretty sure that I have Back to the Future laying somewhere in my car."

The look of gratitude and relief was unmistakable in her eyes as she gave him a hug and whispered quietly into his ear, "we'll do the romantic thing next time deal?"

Charlie smiled at her and nodded as he pressed a soft kiss against her lips.

Dawn crossed her arms as she eyed them "I don't want you guys to stay home just cause of me."

Buffy grabbed her into a one armed hug, "who said anything about you munchkin? I figure it's all about getting some cuddle time with Charlie on the couch!"

Dawn gagged as she swerved out of her sister's embrace, "who're you calling munchkin short stuff? I was taller than you by the time I turned thirteen."

Charlie snorted at his date's loud yell of indignation as he took his jacket off. Maybe it wasn't the ideal first date, but it was theirs. And he had a feeling that he wouldn't want to trade places with anyone in the world.

A/N: Everyone's had a first date that's gone not exactly to plan right? Most of my weird first dates have been the best ones I've had, so I decided to give Charlie and Buffy one of those.

**19. Surprise**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

Dawn sat perched on the back of Buffy's car, she was watching the interplay between Bella and Edward who she finally cornered after the last class of the day. They were too far for her to make out anything but she was having a hell of a time making up the conversation to go with their gestures and wide eyed glances at each other. She twisted her hair into a bun on top of her head and secured the aviators she had on, the sunglasses acting as yet another completely cute yet unnecessary fashion statement. She reached over into the bag laying by her feet and pulled out a bag of chips, Bella's little drama-fest looked like it would take some time and Dawn was getting hungry. She had promised her short friend that she'd stick around to give her a ride home, Bella had slept over at her place the previous night rehearsing the conversation she was going to have with her super brooding honey. About twenty minutes previously Charlie had come to take Buffy for a late lunch and Dawn had successfully weaseled the right to drive the car for the rest of the day. She was just glad that she had her badass outfit on today, if she was going to be riding in a super hot, red convertible- there was no way in hell she would wear sweat pants for that.

She popped another all dressed chip into her mouth and briefly lamented the lack of mustard. Bella looked flushed, her normally pale face was red as she kept poking Edward's chest- no doubt to emphasize her point. Brood boy just stood there glowering but Dawn was sure he was bound to snap soon. She was just glad that she had lots of snacks to keep her occupied while she waited for them to have it out. Plus the drama unfolding in front of her was better than any movie.

A sound of heavy footsteps reached her ears and she turned around to see Jake coming towards her. Dawn's heartbeat raced up a notch as she took in his wide grin and generally happy demeanor. As usual he wore the leather jacket she had first seen him in, this time his jeans were ripped at the knees and he just smelled *wonderful*. Dawn grinned at him as he neared her,

"Hey Jake, what are you doing here?"

He stuffed his hands into the jean pockets, "came to see you actually. Haven't seen you play basketball lately." He offered a smirk tinged with just a hint of shyness.

Dawn winked at him, "you've been coming to the playground huh?"

Jake blushed, something that a full grown werewolf should not have been able to do. Shifters just weren't easily embarrassed damnit!

They had met on the playground a couple of times after their initial encounter, twice they even played a few one on one games. They still hadn't repeated their first kiss but the chemistry between them was incredible. They felt comfortable with each other yet the barely controlled passion was always there, humming right beneath the surface.

He cleared his throat and motioned to her bag of chips "what are you doing? I thought class was over."

Dawn nodded and showed him where the bickering vampire human couple was still going at it. "Moral support for Bells over there, she's finally getting everything out with her sweetie."

She patted the space beside her, "come sit, it'll take some time. I have snacks and we can totally pass the time by trying to figure out what they're saying."

Jake eyed the car dubiously not sure whether it was a good idea to park his behind on such a girly looking vehicle. Since he had come into his werewolf abilities he had noticed that he gained at least a hundred pounds, he had muscles in places that made him blush, he was heavier, he was much faster and his temper ratcheted way up on the scale.

Dawn rolled her eyes, "come on you big baby, sit! Nothing's going to happen, I promise."

He sighed and gingerly took a seat by her, the car creaked a little in warning but other than that everything was fine.

Dawn smiled "see, everything's still peachy keen and you haven't killed Buffy's car. Here," she reached into her bag, "salty or sweet?" She took out a candy bar and a small bag of cheese popcorn.

Jake chuckled "do you always cart around this much junk food?"

Dawn raised an eyebrow, "keep it up funny guy and you won't get any of the delicious, delicious calorie-laden goodness."

He hurriedly snatched both out of her hands and she snickered. It had become a running joke between the two of them when they played basketball that with their respective appetites, they would need to bring a separate backpack full of food when they played sports together.

The brunette at his side let out a happy sigh as she leaned her head on his shoulder, they had become much more tactile with each other, she had even hugged him a few times. It was still in the very early stages but Jake was nearly ecstatic that they were getting there, albeit very slowly.

He unwrapped his candy wrapper and took a bite, swallowing quickly he eyed the gradually emptying parking lot. Students still loitered about, it was a pretty November this year, there was no sun but the weather was pretty good despite the grayness of everything.

"So what's going on with those two?" he motioned to his best friend and her boyfriend who he still didn't like. No matter that he had stopped trying to break them up, she was still too good for his undead ass.

"Hopefully Bella'll be able to get her anger out at him, Eddy's been a real jackass these last couple of months. I really want them to make up, he's not my favorite person at the moment but *she is* my best friend." Dawn leaned over and opened the bag of popcorn, placing it between the two of them, she threw a couple of kernels into her mouth.

"Eddy huh? I still can't believe that she's dating a vampire, I always thought Bella had more sense than that." Jake shook his head as Dawn slowly raised her head from his shoulder, she took his chin and looked him deep in the eyes.

"Jacob Black, now you're just being blatantly bigoted. Eddy's not so bad, and yeah vampire. But he's not like others, him and his family have their souls. If they decide to tell you their story then it'll be their choice." There was a frown on her face as she continued.  
"They're good people Jake, I'm asking you to trust me on this. Esme told me about the Quilete treaty and I can totally get where you're coming from, but don't you think it's time to get over old grudges?"

Jake looked at her, so earnest and intent on reaching him no matter what it took. No matter how much it might have pissed him off, he would try to change his opinion on freaking Edward Cullen. His soul mate's and best friend's happiness depended on it.

He licked his lips and smiled "okay, I'll trust you."

Dawn grinned, "good, cause they're actually related to us, they're like cousins. And me and Buffy really like this part of the family, we're planning on knowing them for as long as we can."

Jake's jaw dropped a couple of inches. Dawn chuckled at his flabbergasted face.

"Yeah, funny story that. I'll tell you all about it later. Let's make fun of the lovebirds!"

She tickled his side and settled her head back on his shoulder. Jake carefully considered his options, he could demand she explain herself or he could just sit with her so close to him and make fun of Edward Cullen without getting punished for it. Jacob Black had never been a stupid guy, he wrapped his large arm around Dawn as she snuggled closer to him.

Bella was huffing as Edward gestured, actions looking more erratic by the minute. He kept running a hand through his hair in irritation.

Dawn giggled "now I know why his hair is always ninety degrees, it's how he keeps so freaking calm."

Jake barked out a laugh, "yeah the vamp's pretty vain, I've never seen him in anything but dress pants."

Dawn took on what was supposed to sound like Edward's voice, "jeans? What is this newfangled invention you speak of? I haven't changed my style since my death, I've always had sticky uppy hair and a stick up my ass."

Jake squeezed her tighter and grinned "civilization's progressed a lot since you died, why don't you move ahead with the times?"

Dawn continued in her Edward voice, "but no, I can't! I'd lose my sparkly vampire street cred if they knew I watched MTV!"

They both snickered. Dawn had been to the Cullen house pretty often these past few months and she knew that they were all in tune with technology, their house was actually one of her favorite hang out places. It was full of light and she usually hung out with Rosalie and Emmett, playing GTA Four with her favorite vampire cousin was how she spent her previous two weekends. Making fun of Edward's highly intense nature was too much fun to pass up though.

They sat quietly on the car, still snuggled up to each other as they watched Edward finally give in to Bella's increasingly furious poking and arguments. The vampire drew their best friend closer to him, they had a long staring moment and gingerly they kissed each other.

Dawn laughed, "oh thank God that's over with!"

She paused " although I've always wondered how is it they can kiss without infecting anyone with their venom."

Jake cocked his head as he remembered something that the pack told him "their venom is in their fangs. So unless he bites her, she's good."

"Check, I'll tell Bella not to indulge in any kinky sexy games with Eddy then."

Jake wrinkled his nose, "ew, I know I'm trying to like him but that's still my best friend you're talking about."

Dawn snorted as she gave a wave to Bella who was looking around for her. As the smaller girl saw her sitting so closely to Jacob a look of triumphant glee crossed her pretty features and she began pulling Edward towards them. The vampire looked like he was trying to reason with Bella, probably pointing out that he and Jake had never gotten along .

Dawn waved them over effectively ending any arguments from Edward as Bella doubled her efforts to reach them.

Jake held tight to her as their best friend and her boyfriend reached the car. Bella raised an amused eyebrow "smoochie time in the school parking lot? What would Buffy say to this Dawnie?"

Dawn cackled loudly "smoochie time! Oh that's freaking priceless! I really think I'm rubbing off on you," she wiped her eyes from the few tears of laughter that slipped out "besides, Buffy's done a lot weirder shit in her school. As long as I'm not fornicating with Jake over here, she'll be cool."

Both vampire and werewolf fidgeted uncomfortably at those words, Bella snorted. She had gotten so used to Dawn's slightly bawdy sense of humor that she really didn't react to her slightly dirty jokes anymore.

Dawn poked the guy who was practically wrapped around her in the ribs.

"Say hi to Edward, don't be so rude" she hissed.

Jake gave her a glare as Edward started. The vampire turned even paler, "Dawn that's okay."

Jake sighed as he uncoiled his body and stood up, both he and Edward sized each other up for a few tense seconds. Jake ran a hand through his hair and looked really uncomfortable as he held his hand out to Edward, "listen man, we're not going to be best friends. But you're dating my best friend, and apparently I'm dating your cousin. So how about we make a truce?"

Edward looked at him startled, and then slowly extended his own hand to shake Jacob's. He glanced at Bella, her smile was blinding as she watched him declare peace with her best friend. At that moment he knew that he did the right thing, Edward would do anything to make her this happy.

Dawn jumped off the car and clapped her hands, "that's great! We're all friendly now," she gave a good hard poke to Jake's back, "and you mister! We're not dating yet, we still have to talk to Billy!"

Edward frowned "why do you have to talk to Billy? He's your dad right?"

Jake nodded wearily, "yeah um… He's actually the elder of the tribe, Dawn and her sister still have to talk to him about the imprinting."

Edward's golden gaze grew larger as he whipped his head from his cousin who was opening the driver's side of the car and back to the werewolf in front of him.  
"You imprinted on her?"

Jake smiled sheepishly, "yeah."

Edward looked shocked for a few more seconds, his cousin had found her soul mate. This was it, no matter how much she tried to deny it- Jacob was *The One* for her. They were bonded for the rest of their lives.

He decided to show some of his rarely seen sense of humor, "congratulations on the marriage then."

He smirked at Dawn's outraged cry of "marriage? Nobody talked about marriage!" and Jake's exasperated shake of the head.

Bella stepped back from where she was conferring with her friend, she motioned back to the long jean clad leg that was bopping up and down with the rhythm of the car stereo, Dawn had stuffed herself firmly into the driver's seat and wasn't getting out unless she had to. "Hey guys, listen- do you want to come with us to the diner? We're both kinda hungry, and they have pretty good burgers."

Jake and Edward looked at each other intently, if they agreed to go with the girls it would almost be like a double date. Did they dare?

Jake broke the stare off first as he opened the passenger door to the car, "I'm game. Not sure what fangface can eat at the diner though," he winked at Bella, "maybe we can just get him a really bloody burger?"

She smiled in bemusement as her boyfriend narrowed her gaze at the chuckling teen who was vainly trying to switch the radio stations despite Dawn's threat to rip his hand off and use it as a windshield decoration.

Bella took Edward's hand, she looked up at him "come with us?"

He sighed, "yeah, otherwise I have a feeling that neither of your best friends will ever let me live it down."

She leaned up and gave him a peck on the cheek. Edward smiled, in those three months that they were on their break- Bella had become much bolder, much more assertive. And though he was still trying to get used to the new her, there were some definite perks.

Dawn snorted at Bella's joke as they finished their food, despite the snarkiness between the two guys it was still a pretty excellent day. They had awesome, fabulously greasy food. Bella and Edward were back together and Jake was definitely showing his feelings towards her by being touchy feely the whole time. Life was good, nothing could bring her down. And then of course, Scooby luck decided to intervene. Her cellphone trilled with Buffy's ring, she excused herself as she picked up the call.

"Whatsup Buff?"

Immediately she could tell something was horrifyingly wrong, her sister sounded like she was desperately trying to stop crying.

"I need you back at the house Dawnie."

Dawn sucked in a sharp breath as she gripped the windowpane in front of her.

"What happened? Please tell me now Buffy, I'll go insane if I have to wait until I get home."

Her sister sniffled as another teary hiccup transmitted down the line.

"Faith called, she needs my help. Apparently Angel and his people have started an apocalypse, they're really fucked."

Buffy's voice grew angrier, "they tried calling Giles for help and he said no, he said that I didn't trust Angel anymore. So they called Faith who called me. They need all the help they can get if they're going to get through this."

A strangled sob floated as a measure of her emotional pain from the oldest living slayer on record.

"Spike's alive Dawnie, he's been with Angel for a year and a half and nobody thought to tell me."

All the blood drained from Dawn's face as she stared with unseeing eyes into the diner parking lot. Spike was alive…

Buffy gave a great watery sigh, "just come home Dawn. I'm leaving for LA tomorrow, we need to figure out what's going to happen." She hung up.

Dawn's fingers relaxed almost on their own accord and her pretty pink cell phone went clattering to the ground. Spike was alive…

A/N: Muahahahaha. Uhm, yeah...  
So I messed with the Angel timeline a bit, the plot bunny bit me pretty hard to get Buffy and Faith to LA to stop the dumb vamps from dying in an alley. See what happens.

Please review!

**20. War Council**

Dawn was numb as her friends' concerned voices reached her consciousness. Spike was alive, had been for the last eighteen months and didn't think that the fact of his resurrection was pretty important for her and Buffy to know about.

Jake was the first one to reach her, wrapping both of his large arms around her slender frame he gently asked "everything okay Dawnie?"

She shook her head, "it's really, really not. I need to get home."

Jake nodded and headed back to their table where Edward was holding Bella's hand. "We need to go guys, I need to take Dawn home," he picked up his girlfriend's jacket from where she had left it.

Bella uncoiled herself from the chair she was sitting on "I'm coming too, whatever's happened I need to be there for Dawn and Buffy."

Edward was silent as he dropped a couple of bills on the table, "you'll get the next one" he told Jake before the other boy had a chance to open his mouth and protest. Jake nodded as the three of them left the diner.

Dawn was standing outside shivering, she looked at them with glassy eyes "the keys are in my jacket," she stuttered out lips numb with the cold.

Jake gingerly draped the jacket over her shoulders "please let me drive?"

Dawn looked at him, she felt comfort and assurance that he was there. Maybe the soul mate thing was a crock and maybe it wasn't, but for right now Jacob Black was there for her. She reached into her pocket and handed him the keys to the car, still silent she got into the passenger seat. Bella and Edward quietly got into the back and they pulled out.

As they came closer to the Summers house, they could see Emmett's SUV sitting in their driveway. Dawn jumped out and began running inside before Jake a chance to come to a complete stop.

"Buffy!" she yelled as she leaped over the porch steps.

"I'm in the living room Dawnie," her sister's weary voice called out. The brunette quickly entered the room to find the Cullens in their house. Buffy looked pale, eyes rimmed with red as she sat next to Carlisle who had the slayer in a fatherly hug. She rose as her little sister squeezed her into a hug, they held tight to each other for a few moments before Buffy sat back down.

Dawn noticed that her older sister was the first one to initiate a hug with Carlisle, it felt good to have family with you in moments like these.

She looked around the living room, Alice was quietly talking on the phone as she gave Dawn a gentle smile. Emmett sat near the television as he unpacked the wires to a brand new x-box.

"Where's Esme, Rose and Jasper?" Dawn asked her sister.

Buffy snorted "Esme's taken over our kitchen, she's roped Rose into helping her. Jazz is in the back making stakes, it's amazing what you can do with vampiric speed."

Dawn slowly nodded, she motioned at Alice "who's she talking to?"

"Faith," Buffy's answer was surprising, but at that moment Dawn was just so emotionally numb.

All she could do was ask "how come?"

"She had a vision, something about a demon army that Angel unleashes in an hour. Insisted that she had to talk to Faith before she told us the details." Buffy sounded resigned and again Dawn marveled at how much she and her sister had come to trust the Cullens. They were truly family now.

Esme and Rosalie came out of the kitchen at that moment, Esme was carrying a covered tray of something that smelled vaguely like cinnamon and chocolate, Rose had a pitcher of orange juice. With an apron on her, she looked like June Cleaver's supermodel sister with a sunlight allergy.

Jake fidgeted lightly beside Dawn as he took in this example of vampire domesticity.

"Hello Jacob, it's good to see you here," Esme smiled at him and the young Quilete grinned back at her nervously. He raised his hand in awkward wave of greeting. Buffy noticed that he was still holding Dawn's hand in a gesture of comfort, even in an unfamiliar and somewhat hostile situation he still had her sister's well being as a priority.

She felt a wave of warm affection for the boy as she regarded the way he took care of her little Dawnie, who was not so little anymore it seemed.

Esme looked proud as she uncovered the tray to reveal rows of red sprinkled chocolate chip cookies. She motioned to the three human teens as they still stood around, shifting nervously in the situation that seemed to have the adults all agitated.

"Dig in guys, this is a new recipe I found," the Cullen matriarch smiled.

Rosalie snickered, "Esme's got all of these culinary magazine subscriptions. I think the mailman hates us now."

Her adopted mother gave the gorgeous blonde a mock glare, "I like to cook and I'm happy to have people who appreciate it. Besides, I'm not the one who insists on getting every fashion magazine available in English delivered to our house every month." Rose grinned as she hugged Esme with one arm.

Dawn stared at the sweets, "I don't remember us baking cookies before an apocalypse in Sunnydale."

Buffy reached out and squeezed her sister's hand, "we're to going to start a new tradition Dawnie. Come on, I know you love your homemade cookie goodness- I've seen you inhale Bella's baking before. Plus I think we have some milk in the fridge if you guys want."

Dawn was struck by the absurdity of the situation: vampires having war councils with slayers over cell phones, vampires baking with new recipes straight out of Martha Stewart, cookies before an apocalypse. She decided to go with the flow and motioned for Jake to help her with the glasses for the milk.

They walked back into the room, chewing their cookies just as Alice finally got off the phone. She snapped Buffy's hot pink razor as she regarded the solemn faces in the room.

"We need to leave within the next forty minutes, it's tonight for sure. I told Faith that we needed reinforcements, she said that she'll try to get Willow and Xander- they're the only members of the Council that don't answer to mister Giles directly and can disobey orders. It seems that he's pretty adamant that this is a trap and that I quote indirectly 'Angelus is luring us in with our own stupidity.'".

There was a pause then Buffy, who decided to ignore whatever qualms she had with Giles at that moment, asked in that slow, dangerous voice of hers "what do you mean *we* need to go?"

Alice looked like a defiant pixie as she raised her chin to reply "it's going to be an army out there Buffy. You're going to need all the fighters you can get, *and* we're a little harder to kill than the vampires out there."

Buffy stood up as she glared at everyone "no! I will not be responsible for the last of my family getting slaughtered in a war that my two ex honeys started!"

Carlisle drew her closer against her protestations, "we're all adults here Buffy. We're not letting you go alone. We want to protect our family just as much as you do, and I think that we can make the decision to do so. We've already decided to come, so you have a choice- we can either go together and do this properly, or you can leave without us and we'll follow you all the way to Los Angeles. Either way, we'll be right there with you."

Buffy freed herself from his embrace and eyed him carefully, he looked as serious as she'd ever seen him, golden eyes waited for her next move. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "I really don't want to know whether you guys turn into ghosts since you're all soul having. *BUT* don't come haunting me when you get yourselves killed out there."

Rosalie snorted "as if! I have a much better shoe closet, I'd just stay there."

Dawn eyed her, "did you just quote Clueless?"

The blond vampire shrugged, "what? I don't sleep and there's only so much sex you can have before you get bored."

Emmett's voice carried from behind the TV where he was bent over working on connecting the wired properly "my wife, ladies and gentlemen. Got her priorities in order and is apparently one of the biggest secret blabbermouths on this continent."

Everyone chuckled as Rose gave her husband's bottom a swat and an indignated "hey!" was heard muffled by the entertainment unit.

Dawn who had settled with Jake near the opposite wall raised an eyebrow in question "what are you doing there anyway?"

Rose answered for Emmett, examining her perfect manicure she said "he's setting up his spare x-box here."

"Not that I'm not grateful for your bourgeois excess, but why?" Dawn cocked her head to the side.

Emmett rose up from where he was finished with the installation, "*because* munchkin, you guys are going to be bored while we're in LA, and this is so you don't stay up at night panicking. You can play Resident Evil instead," the big vampire looked inordinately pleased with himself as he grinned at her widely.

Dawn stood up from where she was sitting, "excuse me?" she advanced on Buffy. "You think you're just going to leave me here to worry myself crazy while you go against a *freaking demon army*???" her voice rose into a scream.

Buffy rubbed her temples and winced slightly, "okay, first of all? Way to channel your fourteen year old self there Dawn."

She moved to her sister and forced Dawn's mulish glare to focus on her "second? You're not trained anymore. You haven't kept up with your fighting and I know that I said that we were done with the supernatural. But we're not apparently," she smiled humorlessly.

"I love you and I want to keep you safe, but you know that at this point you're going to be a liability to me in the field. You're almost a grown up Dawnie, you have to understand that sometimes you have to make peace with others' decisions."

Dawn *really*, really wanted to scream at her sister; wanted to throw a tantrum, do something violent to release let the influx of emotions threatening to choke her.

Instead she just did the adult thing and sighed as she embraced her sister, "yeah, plus I'm a Summers girl, we're used to dealing with people's dumb decisions."

Buffy laughed as she squeezed her shoulder, "atta girl, and if you're lucky and we survive this apocalypse- I'll teach you all about my awful luck with men that come back to life and don't tell me about it."

She scratched her chin thoughtfully, "Angel came back from hell all crazy and never showed up on my radar, Spike came back from wherever he was and never told me he was alive." She cocked an eyebrow at the grinning Dawn, "you think it's cause of my hair?"

Alice snickered and came forward to the sisters, "and on that really cheery note, I need to talk to you Buffy. It's kind of a private matter."

Buffy let go of her sister and eyed Alice carefully, "did Riley die and come back to life too?"

Dawn chortled as Alice started, "what? No, it's not about that. Just come," she motioned to the backyard.

Buffy sighed theatrically, "ah, this is what I've missed about apocalypse season. I suddenly become the most popular person on the block and it's all thanks to my great charisma."

Alice shook her head as they headed outside.

Jasper's pile of stakes was growing impressive as he looked up at the bemused girls.

"That's a nice talent you've got there Jazz, I'm kinda sad I didn't know you in Sunnydale" Buffy remarked as she picked up one of the stakes.

Alice gave her husband a kiss as he stood up, "I need to talk to Buffy privately. I'll see you inside?"

He nodded and grinned as he saluted to the smiling blonde. She looked at Alice who shrugged. "He was a Confederate soldier, he gets excited at the thought of going to war."

Buffy nodded sagely, "ah, I too have known the pleasure of dating an army man."

Alice sat on one of the patio chairs that Buffy had so painstakingly picked out at Ikea the first week that they moved into the house. She and Dawn had played a countless number of 'rock paper scissors' games before Buffy won on the color scheme of the backyard decorations.

"So what's going on Alice?" Buffy smoothed her long skirt as she sat down.

"First I wanted to ask you, are you going to be okay with Xander and Willow if they come to help?" Alice inquired.

The slayer thought about it for a minute, "yeah, I will be. Just as long as they come with the legitimate intention of helping, I think we can put our past behind us for this fight. I don't know what will happen in the future, but my priority right now is to make sure those two dumb vampires and the people that follow them stay alive long enough for *me* to kick their asses."

The dark haired girl smiled widely, "good, so that brings me to my second topic. I actually had two visions tonight, I talked to Faith to verify the information about the second one. It was pretty detailed and I wanted to make sure that I had everything right." She took an unneeded breath and fidgeted with her pendant as her eyes danced on the tree leaves above them.

Buffy narrowed her gaze, "come on, just spit it out. I'm sure that at this point, I can pretty much take anything you throw at me."

Alice frowned, "you know the requests that Carlisle's dad made from D'Hoffryn?"

"Yes?"

"One of them was that Carlisle and all of his blood kin find their fated mates. Apparently Wesley knew that Christina was pregnant, and since he was about to leave her without any support from his son he decided on a gift for his grandchild. The clincher on the deal for his soul was that his son's son and all of his descendants find their destined significant others. I guess the demon really needed his victory in Arashmahaar because he agreed."

Buffy's eyes grew huge at the implications of Alice's words. "What? No? That can't be right!"

Alice sighed, "I'm sorry Buffy. Did you ever wonder why everyone in my family is paired off? Carlisle's blood beats in us too, his venom changed our bodies. Even after death we still managed to find our mates. You're his direct descendant and so is Dawn. She's found her soul mate in Jacob."

Buffy gulped in air, as her fists itched to do some violence. Alice quickly moved out of her way as the blonde pushed the chair back she was sitting on and punched the tree in her yard three times. Stupid destiny, stupid soul mates, stupid everything! She roughly rubbed her temples and sighed as her temper quieted down, her knuckles looked pink as she looked at her hand- thank God nothing was broken. It'd be kinda dumb to come to an apocalypse with a self inflicted injury. She could just hear the inquiries 'How'd you break that?'- 'I hit a tree.'

Buffy frowned as her thoughts got back on topic, "how about my mom? She never met her soul mate."

The other girl was grim, "it was mister Giles. They never got a chance to explore the relationship that could have been."

The blonde got a pang as she thought of what could have been had Joyce lived, what kind of life she could have built with her watcher. Buffy sighed deeply and looked at Alice, "so who's mine? Angel? Spike?" she paused, "is it Charlie? Cause that would be kind of cool." She smiled fondly.

Alice grimaced, "it's not any of them, I'm sorry. I could feel your soul mate at the apocalypse vision and in the second one, he had a direct link with you- but he's not somebody that you've dated before. Even though I know you and Charlie have feelings for each other, he's still not your destiny."

Buffy's ire was quickly rising. What the hell? Charlie was a gentle, kind man that gave her those good kind of shivers. He made her feel hope again, an emotion that felt like a phoenix rising from the fire of the disaster with Spike. And now? Now, Alice was telling her that there was some other random guy out there that she was destined to be with?

Alice gripped her hand firmly and Buffy noticed that she was using her vampire strength to keep Buffy from rushing off, "listen, I know how angry you are. But just listen. I *felt* what it was going to be like when you guys find each other, and oh Buffy- the connection between you two is beautiful. I cried, it's so pure."

The blonde closed her eyes as she covered her face with her hands. She felt like crying, like sobbing with the unfairness of it all. It was like a light at the end of the tunnel, blinking in and out with the hope of better things to come. She wanted to rage, she wanted violence but yet? There was a small part of her that kept getting bigger by the moment, a part that was beginning to hope for a happy ending.

She raised her eyes to meet Alice's sympathetic gaze, "if we come, is there a chance of saving him?"

The seer nodded, "yes. Come, fight and he will survive."

Buffy nodded as Alice stood for an embrace, "I'm sorry."

They hugged and Buffy stepped back with a laugh, "hey? At least now we know that the imprinting thing is the real deal for Dawnie, which I gotta say- pretty cool."

Buffy's cellphone rang, Alice sheepishly handed it back to her with a smile. She flipped it open, "Faith?"

The other slayer's voice sounded strained, tired "B. Me, Rob and Willow will be at your place in about ten minutes, get weapon ready." She hung up.

Buffy picked up her pace with Alice hurrying by her side. They gathered all the stakes into a handily prepared black duffle and moved back into the living room.

Everybody was chatting in groups to each other as Buffy gave a loud whistle. "Okay everyone, it's t minus nine minutes. We're going to LA by wicca express, suit up- cause it's time to party!"

Emmett whooped as he hugged Rosalie, Buffy smiled- she knew that he was enthusiastic about getting to fight some demons and the evil kind of vampires. Jasper was nearly bouncing with excitement, his normally stoic self vibrated with readiness for battle.

She moved towards the weapon chest and began outfitting everyone with swords, daggers, crossbows. Besides carrying weapons on their body, they each carried a black bag filled with a miniature armory.

Buffy found herself slipping back into battle mode pretty easily, it felt good to be a warrior once again and with a painful tug, she realized that her little fantasy consisting of a small town life with Charlie was shattered. She really liked the guy, he made it easier for her to breath again. He allowed her to feel without choking on emotions like Spike. He took care of her without being condescending and selfish about it like Angel. He was there. And yet? There was something missing, if Alice was right- the missing element was her soul mate. Who she would be rescuing alongside her two exes.

She came up to Dawn who was standing in a loose embrace with Esme, she lifted her sister's chin to meet her eyes "you be good okay? I'll be back before you know it."

Dawn's eyes filled with tears, "just come back to me. It's all I ask."

Buffy nodded, smiling her own watery smile "I promise."

She moved to give Esme a hug who was staying at the Summers house with Dawn while the rest of the Cullens came with Buffy to LA. "Thank you, for taking care of us. For just being there."

Esme smiled with a nod as she squeezed Buffy and the slayer knew that had she been fully human, her ribs would probably have been crushed by now.

Buffy moved to Jacob, she looked him up and down appraisingly.  
"Listen, I know we haven't gotten a chance to get to know each other so far, but I promise that when I come back- I'm going to make every effort to get to know the kind of person you are."

She thought about it for a second and then moved into a hug with the startled teen, he had to bend almost in half to envelop the petite blonde in his arms. "Take care of my sister alright? I know you're her soul mate, so I'm trusting you to keep her from doing something really stupid."

Jake nodded, "I will."

Buffy stepped back just as the air around them began to smell like strawberries, energy crackled white with lighting as three figures appeared in the middle of a closed circle. Faith gave a jaunty wave and a wink "heya B, just like old times huh?"

Robin smiled "hi Buffy, hi Dawn."

Buffy though, she kept looking at the third figure with them. Willow, the red witch. Willow the ex-computer nerd. Willow the girl that was there for seven of her most formative years. Two years of silence, of heavy accusations lay between the two ex-best friends as they stared at each other.

Willow was the first to give a tentative smile "hi Buffy."

Buffy grinned back at her half heartedly, she motioned back to the rest of the room occupants "hi Wills, this is my family- they're coming with us to help."

The vampires behind them looked wickedly conspicuous as they stood outfitted in more weapons than a character in a Dungeons and Dragons game.

Alice gave a delicate little cough, "we need to go, things are just about to heat up."

Willow nodded as she raised a palm forward expanding the white, crackling energy circle. She smiled at everyone "come on everyone, let's get going."

Buffy gave a last wave to Dawn, the Cullens grouped together as they stepped into Willow's circle. There was a flash and then everyone disappeared.

**21. LA- 1**

Disclaimers on Ch.1 I'll add in a special one cause this is a three part arc that will correspond with the Angel The Series Season 5 episode "Not Fade Away."

This will have various part of the episode transcript from- /angel_tran_

Thank you guys so much for reviewing! I love it, and it definitely inspires me to write more and more importantly to write *faster*.

The gang's stay in LA will be covered in three chapters.

Jake looked at Dawn as the group vanished from their sight, "so uh…" he paused.  
"What happened just now?"

She sighed and went to get some more cookies, "gather 'round children. For I have a tale of heroes, woe, destiny and mucho vampire broodiness to tell."

She motioned to Bella, "this will definitely concern you a lot, cause I *know* your boyfriend. King of sorrow that one is."

Esme smiled as she placed some cookies on a plate and put it in front of Bella and Jake who were listening raptly to Dawn's story.

Buffy spat on the ground, her body shook as Willow's energy stopped sending threads of lightning dancing through her veins.

The redhead looked apologetic as she took in everyone's expressions, "sorry guys. Haven't teleported groups as large as this for the last year, I forgot how badly sentient beings react to me using too much of my power."

Faith coughed as she rubbed Robin's back, he was bent over wheezing a grey pallor spread alarmingly on his handsome features.

"Yeah Red, just next time- keep in mind that humans need to breathe when they're going through energy portals like that," she glanced back at the very uncomfortable looking Cullens, "also- think that the sparklepires didn't take to your method of travel too."

Buffy adjusted her hair as she straightened up, she looked at Carlisle "you guys okay?"

He nodded "we're good to go."

The blonde slayer grinned, "alrighty then, let's party."  
She turned to Faith, "are you sure that Angel will be here? Isn't heading a law firm kind of out of the job description for him?"

Faith shrugged, "hey B, he was your boy toy, I have no idea what was going through his thick skull when he accepted this position."

Buffy took her place beside her sister slayer, she threw a companiable arm around the other woman's shoulder and tilted her head back to look at the Wolfram and Hart skyscraper. She looked at the Cullens and at the grinning Faith, "let's find out then."

As she headed into the building after Willow, she asked her "hey Wills, listen- I need another huge favor that I need to ask which I know is totally of the bogus cause I haven't see you in like years- but this is pretty important."

The redheaded witch snickered, "I see that you've got your own version of babble now."

Buffy smiled, "yeah."

"What do you need Buff?"

"What do you know about destiny mates finding each other? Alice said that it's a kind of soul magic that happens right?"

Willow nodded as a thoughtful look came into her green eyes.

"Can you make sure that no magic affects me today?"

"But why?" Willow didn't know the details of what her ex-best friend was asking, but it sure didn't sound dangerous to her. What would be the need for blocking it?

Buffy licked her lips, "I need to make sure that I'm in top fighting form for this, I can't have anything distracting me. I need you to cast a spell for the next forty-eight hours, so that no soul magic can affect me, it shouldn't drain you right? Can you do that for me?"

Willow smiled sadly, her hand twitched as the desire to hug the blonde slayer threatened to overwhelm her. She had missed her best friend for these two years damnit!

She nodded, "sure, I can do that. I already have shields on everyone to make sure that we're not affected by harmful magic, I'll modify yours to include soul magic too."

Buffy sighed in relief as she thanked God for the fact that the most powerful wicca in the Northern hemisphere was on their side. She motioned to Willow and they headed after the others who were waiting for them inside the lobby, they were really and truly going into the belly of the beast.

WOLFRAM AND HART INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ROOM- DAY  
Angel is meeting with Lindsey. Angel's pacing. Lindsey is sitting at the  
conference table.  
LINDSEY  
You gotta be joking. Why on God's green and verdant Earth would I  
trust you, huh? Or you, me?  
ANGEL  
'Cause it's not about us, Lindsey. It's about them. The wolf. The  
ram. The hart. The ones we've been fighting against forever.  
LINDSEY  
You can't beat 'em.  
ANGEL  
Maybe they're not there to be beat. Maybe they're there to be fought.  
Maybe fighting them is what makes human beings so remarkably strong.

LINDSEY  
(stands)  
You're not talking about the kind of strength human beings have.  
(sits on the edge of the table)  
This is not about coveting your neighbor's ass, your buddy's job,  
the last Mallomar in the box. You're talking about fighting flesh  
and something that passes for blood demons with enormous power, and  
they will mow you down.  
ANGEL  
Maybe... but I keep thinking that once this world was theirs and now  
it's not.  
LINDSEY  
Isn't it?  
ANGEL  
Give me the hell on Earth speech, Lindsey. I know how bad things are,  
how much sway the demons hold. I happen to be the greatest mass murderer  
you've ever met.  
LINDSEY  
Never given you props for that, have I?  
ANGEL  
There's always going to be power, and there's always going to be corruption.

LINDSEY  
So again I ask you—  
ANGEL  
'Cause it's not what I'm expected to do. 'Cause you're good in a fight.  
And let's say we come up rolling 7s and this does go our way. We tear  
up this firm, someone's going to have to step in. I know that's what  
you want. Now, I'm a lot more comfortable with the thought of you  
in that position than anyone else.  
LINDSEY  
The devil you know.  
ANGEL  
That'd be you.  
LINDSEY  
And what if you roll snake eyes?  
ANGEL  
You'll talk your way out of it. You'll tell them I forced you to help  
me. Tell them I made my scary face.  
LINDSEY  
Believe it or not, I was actually talking about you. You don't care  
about being squashed like a bug?  
ANGEL  
You haven't heard a word I've said. For, like, years back.  
LINDSEY  
Well, you get a little speechy, all right? And I breeze out. I got  
the Cliff Notes—honor and humanity. Absolute good. I heard it.  
So here's the plot twist—I'm in.  
ANGEL  
Why?  
LINDSEY  
Everybody goes on about your soul. Vampire with a soul. Nobody ever  
mentions the fact that you're really a vampire with big brass testes.  
This is gonna be a circus. I mean, win or lose, you're about to pick  
the nastiest fight since mankind drop-kicked the last demon out of  
this dimension. And that you don't do without me. If you want me,  
I'm on your team.  
ANGEL  
I want you, Lindsey.  
(beat)  
I'm thinking about rephrasing that.  
LINDSEY  
Yeah, I think I'd be more comfortable if you did.  
(turns away)

Faith's mocking voice interrupted their uncomfortable moment, "hey B, I never knew Angel was into the freaky. Plus, the whole speech made me feel oddly nostalgic about good ol' Sunnyhell."

Angel stared at the dark haired slayer who threw him a wink and gave a jaunty wiggle of her left hand. A tall black man stood beside her holding her right, eyeing him warily he gave a nod of acknowledgment. And six of the palest vampires Angel had seen outside of Europe were milling around as they took in his office.

The last person who he'd expected to see in the LA branch of Wolfram and Hart stepped to the front of the crowd, she gave him an appraising look and then shot back at Faith still keeping her eyes on his figure "well you know how it is, he spent like a hundred years with Spike and Drusilla. There *must* have been some kinky three way action going on there."

Faith winced and then smiled wider as she took in Angel's growing incredulity, "and just think- with Spikey all alive and shit, your vamp boy toy is probably remembering some of his past exploits."

Lindsay started snickering as Buffy snorted at the uttered comment.

Everybody turned to look at the very amused looking Texan, he raised an eyebrow and slowly uncoiled his lithe frame off the chair. He stalked over to where Buffy was eyeing him with an unreadable look on her face. He extended a hand.

"Lindsay McDonald, pleasure to finally meet you Miss Summers. I've heard so much about you."

Buffy exchanged a glance with Faith who gave her an imperceptible nod and shook his hand in introduction.

Turning to give Faith a smile, Lindsay drawled "and Miss Lehane, it's always such a delight to lay my eyes on you."

Robin straightened up beside her and Faith smirked "can it loverboy," she looked over at the still silent Angel. "You called for reinforcements?"

He finally shook out of his reverie as he snapped out at Buffy "what? You decided to come after all? After we've been calling you for the last four months! After Fred died?"  
Angel snarled as he came closer to her face, "well guess what? We'll be fine without you!"

Buffy narrowed her gaze at the raging vampire, she smiled gently and threw a hard punch at his nose, Angel flew back and smacked against the wall sliding down into a heap.

The petite slayer slowly walked up to him, examining her nails as she enunciated her every word "I haven't been Council for two and a half years Angel, I haven't seen Giles or Willow and Xander since the week after Sunnydale's collapse."

She drew down into a crouch as she looked at her lying ex whose eyes were glowing a feral yellow, "what I can't understand here, is why you gave up on looking for me after just talking to Giles. Why you didn't freaking wait to talk to me in person!" she shouted the last part as Angel winced.

Buffy took a paper napkin from Edward who was holding it out for her, she smiled at him "thanks Eddy." She slowly wiped off the blood that her punch left on his face, Buffy smiled gently "you ever do something this stupid again without telling me, and I promise that I will decapitate you myself. Got it?"

Angel nodded, there was a long pause and then she helped him stand up.

"We're here for each other dumbass, just cause we're not dating that doesn't mean I want you to bring hell on earth without me there!" she playfully punched him using some of her slayer strength, her mood might have been better but he was still on her bad side.

She took his arm and maneuvered him to meet her family, "Angel- this is my uncle Carlisle and my cousins Emmett, Rosalie, Alice and Jasper and of course my little mini you- Edward. Only me and Dawn get to call him Eddy, we like him lots. They're going to help with your whole shebang."

Her ex boyfriend respectfully shook each of their hands and stepped back with a contemplative look on his face as his eyes darted back and forth between Buffy and her extremely strange relations.

"Buff, I hope this won't surprise you but you *are* aware that they don't have heartbeats right?" he asked her.

Buffy grinned and bounced on the balls of her feet, "special type of vamps. Much much stronger than you, and they can walk in the sunlight too!" She took obvious delight in Angel's shock as Emmett and Jasper began to laugh.

Faith hefted the duffle on her shoulder as she cleared her throat, "shouldn't we get going? Apocalypse to stop, demons to slay?" She turned to look at Alice, "also, didn't you say there'd be a dragon?" Alice nodded and Faith shot her arm up "I call dibs!"

"Damn it!" Emmett pounded his fist through the conference room table and it collapsed. Everybody gave him a look as the big vampire sighed forlornly with real sadness "*I* wanted the dragon."

Faith scratched her arm idly as Robin whispered something to her, "dude, we can totally share the dragon. Plus, having a demon army invade LA means there'll be *loads* of cool things to kill." She grinned as Emmett made a fist bump with Jasper.

Angel raised his hands and shouted above the ensuing din, pretty much everybody was excited about the dragon and Faith had begun talking weaponry with Emmett and Jasper in the corner.

"Whoa whoa whoa! How the hell do you guys know all this?"

Buffy smiled as she reached for the small pixie-like vampire, "my cousin Alice is a seer, saw the whole thing ahead of time, came to warn me about your dumbass assumptions."

She cocked an eyebrow, "she's actually kind of the reason that you're going to survive tonight, so do try to make friends."

Buffy mock whispered to the other Cullens "it's hard for him to interact with new people, you gotta warn him of their intentions ahead of time, it's a thing…"

Edward snorted and Carlisle hid the twitching of his lips. Emmett and Jasper were still hotly debating the merits of crossbows versus swords against dragon hide.

Angel scowled as he motioned to the grinning Lindsey, "everyone, this is Lindsey McDonald- he'll be helping us."

Faith raised her head from where she was furiously gesticulating the proper motions to multiple vampire decapitation, she eyed the former lawyer curiously "huh."

Buffy whipped her head around to look at him too and then asked Faith "what do you mean huh? Bad huh? Good huh?"

One corner of her lips twitched as Faith answered "my kind of huh. He's all redemption seeking now, at least I think he is, 'cause last time I saw the dude he was giving me money to off your ex."

She poked Angel's shoulder, "unless you have a death wish that you'd like to share with the class?"

He scowled at her, "You mean besides the whole of going up against an inter-dimensional evil law firm?"

Faith nodded with a bright and happy smile.

"Nah, I'm good. Much cheerier than earlier this year."

She chuckled as they began filing out after the others.

Carlisle went first, every step the proper seventeenth century gentleman.

Emmett and Jasper followed, still shoving each other and chuckling at the dirty dragon jokes Emmett kept making up on the spot.

Rosalie snickered as she royally glided after them with a smirking Edward by her side. It didn't matter that they weren't together, the sight of the two of them was striking to behold and the few employees that were still loitering around the building stopped and stared as they passed by. Harmony eyed the gorgeous blonde with jealousy as she called out to a silent Buffy, "bye Buffy, nice seeing you! Thanks for not staking me or anything!"

The vampire receptionist laughed nervously at the blonde slayer's parting remark.  
"Later" Buffy threw over her shoulder with a wink. Was that a threat? Was that an informal goodbye?

Lindsey followed the small blonde whose vampire ex was his number one favorite toy to play with and annoy, a lascivious smirk on his face that he knew was just pissing Angel off in that really good way where his forehead vein began to throb with borrowed blood.

The vampire scowled as Lindsey raunchily licked his lips, the Texan was chuckling as he fastened his pace to keep up with Buffy.

Angel crossed his arms as he followed his allies, he leaned over to Faith "when'd Buffy become so-" he paused.

Faith raised an eyebrow, "is the word you're looking for bitchy?"

The tall vampire nodded, "kinda."

Faith shook her head with a smile, "she's not. She's just grown up. Plus she's mobilized all the resources she had at her disposal, including her freaking family to come help you clean up a mess you stupidly started. I'd advise you to be grateful dude."

She took Robin's hand who gave her a quick peck on the lips as they began walking a little faster to get themselves some privacy away from the main group.

Angel was deep in thought as a melodic voice interrupted his musings, he had to look down a little bit to the right of him to see the very small Alice Cullen. He didn't know it was possible, but here was somebody that was smaller than Buffy and still managed somehow to look badass.

"You should trust him you know, he's serious about his turning over a new leaf."

Angel scowled deeply, he knew that he sounded petulant but a small child in the back of his head was yelling and stomping his feet as he pointed out 'Do you *see* the way Buffy's looking at him?' Amusingly enough, Angel's inner child still had the Irish accent that the vampire had lost.

He looked at Alice and then back ahead at Lindsey who was holding the door open for a smiling Buffy, "no, he can't be trusted. He'll just turn on us again."

Alice sighed, "he should have been on the good side three years ago, but you were the one that made the decision for him to become an enemy. Don't let your personal dislike of him keep you from making the right decision."

Angel was still scowling as Alice used her trump card, "what you're going to ask Lorne to do, it'll destroy him. You're effectively going to kill two champions of good because you can't get over your stubbornness."

She took his arm and looked into his eyes, despite the pettiness she could see within and the vision of unwitting cruelties that he had done, she could tell that there was a bright spark of honor in him- "promise me you'll think about it."

Angel nodded.

Please, Please Review!

A/N: I really wanted to insert the fact that there was some strong vibage between Spike and Angel going on.  
*snickers*

**22. LA-2**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

The LA parts will have dialogue taken from the AtS episode Not Fade Away. The address for the site is given on the previous chapter.

Okay, I love you guys soo much for reviewing regularly and for giving me the recommendations that hype me up more than my morning and after morning coffees combined!

Buffy leaned over to Alice, "so why'd you say that the apocalypse would start in forty minutes? It seems like Angel's taking his sweet time with things."

Alice grinned as she adjusted her peasant top, "because I've seen how punctual you are, if I would have said that your ex was going to try and bring down a huge evil by night time- you'd probably have spent the whole day moping around over your *other* ex."

She patted her blonde cousin's shoulder reassuringly, "this way you get to catch up with your old friends, take out some of your frustrations… Besides, I haven't been to LA for the last fifty years, I wanna explore!" she grinned and bounced away to hug Jasper's back. Her husband gave her a smile as he gathered her into a tight embrace never breaking his dialogue with Emmett.

Buffy shook her head in amusement, it never failed to amaze her how absolutely cheerful the small girl was. Optimism, thy name was Alice.

Angel entered a building, everyone followed him. The usually brooding vampire looked startled as the Cullens easily filed into the elevator.

"What?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.

"I bought this building a while ago, they didn't need an invitation to come in," he hissed.

"First of all, when'd you go all corporate stooge of undead Americana?" Buffy mocked.

"Second of all, they don't need an invitation to private domains. Like I said, completely different vampires than you." The tiny blonde looked positively gleeful as her towering ex-boyfriend gloomily looked at the family next to him. Jasper and Emmett's argument was beginning to reach fevered heights, verbal parrying back and forth had evolved into a very heated tournament of 'rock, paper, scissors.'

"Also, they have their souls," Buffy just couldn't resist sticking that in. Angel began skulking as the elevator dinged on their floor and everybody began walking out.

Buffy wrinkled her nose, "who lives in the basement? It's so dark here."

Angel smirked, "Spike does."

She grinned widely, surprising everyone except for Faith and Alice who were exchanging amused grins at the expression of vicious excitement on the blonde slayer's face.

"Well, that's just nifty- an enclosed space and nowhere to run," Buffy rubbed her hands together and gave a cackle.

Everyone looked at her, she shrugged and motioned to the door and back at the crowd.  
"Have any of *your* significant others died saving the world and then came back to life without telling you about it?"

Everyone stayed wisely silent, she nodded firmly.

"I thought so," she gave Angel a poke in the ribs, "go ahead , start knocking."

"Ow," he rubbed the sore spot and knocked on the door, "you've gotten so violent."

"It's my old age showing," Buffy quipped as she positioned herself right in front of the door where she could hear approaching footsteps.

Faith called out from behind her, "plus, I'm pretty sure that you haven't been laid in like a year. That's *gotta* be making you cranky yo."

The door swung open and Spike's shocked face was the first one they saw.

"Bloody hell, Buffy what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Hi honey, missed me?" she gave the incredulous vampire the same gentle smile she previously bestowed on Angel. The dark haired vampire wisely got out of the way.

"What? How?" Spike stuttered out and Buffy let another punch fly. The peroxide blond sailed through the air and crashed into the wall with the coat rack.

The Cullens were the first ones to walk in and Carlisle calmly commented, "maybe you shouldn't punch any more of your ex-boyfriends Buffy."

"They deserved it, stupid dumbasses," she darkly commented and followed her uncle inside.

"Damn B, you have some *serious* anger issues that you need to work out. Maybe the apocalypse will be good for your nerves, calm you down a bit," Faith whistled in appreciation as Spike struggled to regain his orientation on the ground.

Robin looked deliriously happy as he silently followed his fiancée inside.

Rosalie surveyed Spike's apartment in disgust as she stepped over his prone form, "swanky," her voice dripped with disdain.

Angel bent over and helped Spike up, "she's cranky," he explained.

"Get off git," the blond shrugged off Angel's arm and pulled himself up on his own.

His grandsire shrugged, you *try* to be nice. And what happens?

Buffy in the meantime was introducing herself and her family to the people in the room. Lorne still looked depressed at what was about to happen but a spark of hope had come back into his scarlet eyes at the reinforcements coming to help. Especially after Angel had spent a good ten minutes ranting the other day, about ungrateful ex-girlfriends that didn't reciprocate all the help given over the years at various apocalypses.

Faith looked at Angel with furrowed brows from where she was kneeling beside Illyria, "I thought you said Fred was dead?"

"She is, this is Illyria."

"God king of the Primordium," the prone form rasped out and the woman opened her eyes. They were a startling cornflower blue, same shade as the patches of freckles on her skin and the threads through her hair.

"Huh…" Buffy looked around the room to see the occupants watching the newcomers warily. Nobody was sure how the two slayers would reach to a grievously injured demon god, but the fact that they were all worried about her told Buffy a lot.

"I told you about her, remember?" Alice crouched down beside Illyria and tucked a strand of blue hair behind her ear in an attempt to see the extent of her injuries.

"Yeah. So, Fred's turned into Illyria the demon god? And you're absolutely sure that Illyria's an ally?" Buffy questioned, just to be on the same page.

Angel nodded slowly and Spike fidgeted. Lorne was still clutching a drink that strongly smelled of alcohol, Gunn was silent and everyone waited for her reaction.

"Okay then, I've made weirder allies before," she turned to Carlisle.

"Can you see if you can do anything for her?" she asked and he nodded reaching into the black duffle which contained his medical kit.

There was a pause as Faith went into the kitchen looking for food. Spike's house always differed from the average vampire's in that his pantry was usually pretty well stocked and he kept loads of little delicacies in the freezer.

"How's she doing?" Gunn asked as he took in Carlisle's gentle ministrations to the beaten Illyria.

"She's not good, she needs more care than I provide here- but I'm guessing that we can't really take her to a hospital," the golden eyed doctor commented as he checked both of her pupils for responsiveness.

"I have a supplier, I can get medical ingredients- just make a list, and I'll get it all. I'm her guide, she needs me." Wesley pleaded.

Carlisle nodded as he eyed the ex-watcher, "alright, do you know her physiological needs?"

Wesley swallowed and nodded.

"Let's get a pen and paper."

The two of them headed to the bedroom to write out a list of things that would help Illyria regain her strength.

"Fat lot of good that's gonna do if Hamilton comes back," Spike muttered as he examined his black nail polish.

Angel looked surprised, "Hamilton did this?"

"You didn't know?" Lorne asked.

The big vampire had a thoughtful look on his face, "he brought Drogyn…"

Gunn pulled his lip back in a close of approximation of a vampire snarl, "to the circle. So that you could kill him and prove that you've gone over."

The green demon sounded bitter as he asked "Yeah. Say, any other tips on how to be a hero we could share with the boys and girls at home?

Angel raised both his hands in a placating gesture, "I didn't have a choice. They would have killed us both— "

"We get it. We'd just like to know if they're gonna need any of the rest of us as proof" Gunn's anger was clearly heard in his intonations.

"Pick us off one by one, you know," Spike piped in.

"No, they won't. We're killing them all tonight" Angel's voice wasn't that loud but his words echoed sharply in Spike's apartment.

Emmett leaned forward to Buffy, "dang cuz, these are some screwed up friends you've got here."

She grinned back at him, "they're stressed, freaking out about the possibility of their leader being evil," Buffy shrugged as Angel's glare reached her, he'd probably heard their little back and forth conversation. "You *know*, the usual apocalypse conversations," she clapped Emmett on the knee as Rosalie leaned forward on her chair and began playing with the blonde slayer's hair.

"I want you guys to all take this day for yourselves, do whatever you want. Because tonight- we're going to kill the Circle of the Black Thorn."

As Angel explained his strategy, Faith motioned to Buffy who moved closer to hear what the other slayer had to say.

"Fang's a strategist, who woulda known? I mean I knew that Angelus was real methodical in his evil schemes- but Angel's a pretty mean SOB too," Faith sounded a little awed as she watched Angel wax lyrical about how they were going to go all heroic Custer's last stand come darkness.

"Yeah, he's just full of surprises" Buffy muttered darkly. Her demeanor lightened as she asked a random question that was bugging her off and on for the last nine years, "hey, do you ever notice that our bad guys have really lame names? Like, the Circle of the Black Thorn- who the hell named them? A botany major?" she snickered with Faith in the corner.

Lorne raised a tentative hand, "so Angelcakes, our lovely guests. Where are they supposed to go?"

The man in question scratched his chin as he contemplated about where to send everyone.

Faith took Robin's hand as she declared to the room at large "I'm going to go do the bridezilla thing with Rob. My boy rocks when it comes to centerpieces."

The men of the group looked at Robin with pity and disappointment, the newly engaged fool was actually glowing as he looked at his bride to be. He didn't even seem upset that Faith was going to drag him off for freaking centerpieces!

Angel coughed and raised his arm "my thing's private," he looked somber as he proclaimed this, eliciting a raised eyebrow from Buffy and a hissper of "Fang's going to get laid!" from Faith.

Spike looked sheepish as he followed suit, "me too."

Emmett elbowed Jasper who grinned and leaned to whisper in Faith's ear. She started cracking up loudly.

"B, I freaking *love* your cousins!" she wheezed in between bouts of raucous laughter.

"What's so funny?" Buffy curiously inquired.

"Emmett's wondering if they're going to spend the whole day going at it. And Jazz says that they'll spend at least half of the time fighting in between all the sex," Edward solemnly intoned and then snorted as he couldn't contain his mirth any longer. "Jazz thinks that all the sexual tension in this room could probably power the whole anti-evil effort for years to come!"

Gradually the whole room began to crack up, everyone's moods lightened except for the two vampires in question who quickly crossed to the opposite sides of the room from each other.

Buffy stopped chuckling and wiped a tear of amusement from her eye, "so can you hear the two chuckleheads?" she asked from Edward.

He shook his head, "I swear, every since Bella came into my life- I've stopped getting weirded out by the fact that I can't hear people. You and Dawn are like a bad radio frequency, I can tune into the stronger thoughts but most if it is like static. The vampires over there, I can't read" he nodded first at Angel who was skulking in the corner and then at Spike who was repainting his nails from a bottle he's pulled out of his pocket.

Edward stopped and eyed the punk vampire, "do you carry nail polish with you wherever you go?"

Spike looked up, "nah mate, I could see this morning that I was getting chipped. Grabbed this one on the go," he seemed insanely proud of himself, "stole it from a drugstore."

Faith grinned encouragingly and clapped him on the back, "good for you! You're still the Big Bad!"

"Big Bad petty thief," Angel snorted in the corner.

Buffy pushed Spike down into the couch before he had a chance to lunge at his grandsire.

Edward voiced yet another concern of his, "how come the green guy's thoughts are all in song? It's oddly like a musical in his head."

Buffy and Faith eyed Lorne who looked very pleased, "I'm Pylean and I love music."

"Is that a slogan?" Emmett broke away from where he was making out with Rosalie and smirked.

"No, I'm from the Pylean dimension. And I happen to love music, that's why I moved to LA," Lorne was patient as he explained.  
It was a testament to the new found unflappability of the Cullens that they didn't react to this proclamation with surprise or shock, yet another fact to take in with their kooky cousin.

"Well I think that it's pretty awesome that you love music this much," Alice smiled gently at Lorne and took his hand. The green demon had a look of pure pleasure on his face at this easy acceptance from an entirely new friend.

"Thanks sugar, and once we get out of this basement- why don't you sing for me huh?" he asked.

"I'm also a seer, I can tell what your future holds by your singing," he explained.

"Really? I'm a seer too!" Alice bounced up and down with excitement.

Jasper smiled silently from where he was sitting besides his joyous mate, he was happy that she'd made another friend.

Faith poked Buffy "check it out, we can start a union with those two."

"Yeah, we can call it Seers R Us." The two slayers snickered with amusement.

Lorne stood up and clapped his hands, "you know what my lovelies? Why don't I take you with me to Caritas? Lots of cocktails, some singing, some dancing."

Buffy looked intrigued as Alice immediately agreed to go with a hop and a bright grin on her face. They had to untangle Rose from Emmett but they finally disconnected.

They helped her straighten out her hair, chuckling at her mussed up state.

Emmett and Jasper looked at each other and protested "we don't want to go to some bar to sing karaoke."

Gunn coughed and raised a hand, "they can come with me. I'm going to Anne's, help out with the kids, see what needs to get done." He turned to look at Buffy, "you *did* say that they're a different kind of vampire right? With souls intact and everything?"

She grinned and gave him a thumbs up, "can go in the sun with some cool special effects and are a lot harder to kill, super strong too."

Gunn grinned, "alright then."

"Who's Anne?" Jasper softly inquired.

"She runs a teen shelter, helps out my old neighborhood a lot," Gunn explained.

The Cullen brothers looked at each once more, seemingly able to read what the other was thinking through their gazes. Emmett got up from his chair, "cool- we're in."

Edward got up from where he was sitting, "I'm going to stay here with Carlisle, he'll need help with Illyria." He looked at the prone form of the blue haired god king with a sympathetic expression on his face.

Buffy grinned, "alright so that takes care of everyone, let's get moving people!"

Angel grumbled softly to Spike near the kitchen where they had managed to congregate once more, "I forgot how bossy she was."

The blonde nodded as his eyes followed Buffy's retreating back. He knew he had messed up pretty badly, from the first punch thrown to the continuous ignoring of him- Buffy had shown her displeasure at his actions.

He just hoped that they would survive this apocalypse and get a chance to make headway on their reconciliation.

The girls sat in Caritas, listening to Lorne sing. He was on stage, crooning with a Sea Breeze in his hand and a smile on his face.

If I ruled the world,  
Every day would be the first day of spring,  
Every heart would have a new song to sing,  
And we'd sing of the joy every morning would bring...

Both Alice and Rosalie held drinks in their hands, Rosalie listened to the song with a calm smile on her beautiful face as Alice leaned over to Buffy.

"Last time I was in LA, there were no bars serving animal blood," she whispered.

Buffy grinned, "you just gotta have the right hookups my friend. You enjoying the otter blood?"

The dark haired vampire nodded, "it's really good, laced with something extra I can't tell. But it makes it taste spicy, I like it!"

The blonde slayer motioned to Lorne who was holding the mic in between two hands and singing with an ecstatic expression his face, "ask him for the recipe when he's done. He's the owner of this fine establishment."

Alice nodded.

The song ended and everyone erupted into thunderous applause. Strangely enough Rosalie was among the loudest, both her table companions exchanged wide smiles at the fangirl like behavior from the normally calm woman.

Lorne bounced to the table, "oh my little pretties, it just a warms a heart to know that all of this beauty is sitting in such close vicinity to an unworthy shlub like me."

Alice snorted as Buffy leaned over and gave Lorne a one armed hug, she really couldn't hold her alcohol very well as she told them previously. Two cocktails and Buffy was ready to get friendly.

"come on sugar, why don't you go on up and sing for me? We'll see what's going on in that life of yours," Lorne gently prodded the widely smiling Buffy.

"Are you sure about this?" Alice leaned over the table to the gleeful green demon.

"Oh come on! I could feel the connection as soon as she walked in, but Willow's magic is keeping it hidden for the moment. If she sings, I'll be the second to know. Besides, I kept telling the new bartender to make her drinks doubles so she'd sing- it'd be a waste of alcohol if she didn't go up," Lorne pleaded.

"Fine, but don't blame me when her exes decide to have your head on a platter cause you knew and didn't tell them," Alice raised both of her hands up.

Buffy was on stage selecting her song and as the music started, both of her cousins realized how much the song she had chosen matched to her current life situation.

At first I was afraid, I was petrified  
Kept thinking I could never live without you by my side  
But then I spent so many nights just thinking how you did me wrong  
And I grew strong  
And I learned just how to get along

The music swelled and Rose was the first out of her seat whooping with joy at Buffy's surprisingly strong voice.

Lorne took a sip of his Sea Breeze and eyed the blonde vampire contemplatively, he really needed to give the poor dear some addresses for demon karaoke in Washington. Who knew that she liked music this much?

Buffy was really getting into her singing as the vision of her mate slammed into Lorne's mind, leaving him gasping for air with scarlet eyes turning to Alice in shock.

"HIM? REALLY?"

She looked smug as she said, "see! I *told* you, you didn't want to know."

In a coffee shop tucked into a back corner of a quiet street, a vampire father sat conversing with his human son. For the first time ever, there was no animosity, no hate, no fear between them as they enjoyed each others' company.

Emmett and Jasper laughed at Gunn's sparkle jokes as they helped Anne unload the truck parked near the shelter. The three men were getting on surprisingly well, all the time spent with Angel had made Gunn more open to other supernatural entities. Plus the whole shebang with getting his brain upgraded by Wolfram and Hart was a big flag that he shouldn't judge others.

"Are you sure about this?" Robin kissed Faith's nose as they stared at the building in front of them.

"Yeah, I am. I know we're going to survive through the night, but I *really* want to do this now," she smiled and pulled out a cell phone.

Spike grinned widely as he finally got the acclaim for his poetry that his innermost self had desperately wanted for the last hundred years or so. Even without a soul, he was still William- the lovesick poet, and now he had finally found the courage to share his gift with the world.

Edward silently handed his father the bandages needed for Illyria's wounds.

As Rosalie rocked out on the stage, Buffy's cell phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and smiled as she saw who was calling, lifting up a finger to her friends she went outside to hear better.

"Hey, where are you guys?"

"You want me to come where?"

Buffy hurried out of the taxi that she, Rose, Alice and Lorne were stuffed into.

"Come on, come on! Faith said this was an emergency!" she prompted.

They quickly ran across the street where familiar figures stood milling around.

Faith was holding Robin's hand as they made jokes with a young guy with floppy hair, Angel stood in the shadows smiling at whatever they were saying.

"Faith! What's going on?" Buffy called out.

Her sister slayer turned to her and licked her lips in nervousness, "Now that everyone's here, we wanted you guys to be the first ones to know -we're going to get married in fifteen minutes. The Los Angeles Commissioner owes me a favor for saving his niece from a pack of Gr'valniks last year, they agreed to marry us without the wait."

Everyone looked shocked and then the silence was broken with loud cries of "congratulations!"

Buffy hugged Faith with all her might as the taller girl sniffled discreetly. Buffy wiped off the tear from her cheek as she quietly asked her, "are you sure about this?"

"Yeah, I mean we're still going to have the reception in spring. But I want to be married to Rob," she confessed.

They hugged again with both women crying now as Alice and Rose exchanged happy smiles with each other.

Buffy stepped up to Robin and gave him a hug too, "you hurt her, and I'll kill you and hide the body." He laughed as he bent down to hug his friend.

Robin straightened up and looked at Buffy, "listen, I wanted to ask you- will you be my best woman for the wedding? Faith's planning on asking Angel to be her best man, and we can't imagine our wedding without you there in some official capacity." He winked at her, "I used to be your boss, I *know* how much you like to see your name on official documents."

Buffy gaped and slapped his shoulder, "of course you big dork! You don't even have to ask!"

Faith stepped away from Angel's embrace, the vampire felt like tearing up a little too, not that he would ever admit it out loud.

"I'd be proud to be your best man, I'm so happy for you," he uttered and then quickly raised a finger to point out. "I'm happy for you, but no pure joy here!" They both laughed as Angel dragged the floppy haired young man into their circle, "this is Connor everyone. He's my son."

"Whoa, you have a son?" Buffy eyed the two of them.

Angel smiled brightly at his progeny and explained, "there was a prophecy."

Both slayers nodded sagely, "ah!". They had dealt with many a strange prophecy, a vampire having a son was not nearly at the top.

The deputy commissioner smiled nervously as he took in the wedding party in front of him.

None of them were wearing clothes that one would expect at such a momentous occasion as this. The bride was a very curvy brunette with a sleeve full of tattoos, wearing leather pants and a white tank top.

The groom was a tall, bald headed, black man wearing jeans and a hoodie.

The best man certainly looked like a dangerous element standing inside the official's room, long leather duster over a dark grey shirt and black slacks.

The best woman was a small, perky blonde in red leather pants and a black jacket.

Their guests consisted of two beautiful, extremely pale women; a guy wearing a fedora low on his head and a trench coat with the lapels turned way up and a young guy wearing a Stanford University t-shirt and jeans.

Officially the strangest wedding party he had seen in his five year career.

The bride and groom had written their own vows and turned to each other, hands grasped firmly and eyes glued only on their significant others' face.

The brunette whose name was becoming Faith Wood, began.

"I never knew what love was until I met you. I didn't have a family growing up, my mother was the first person to ever tell me that I would never amount to anything. I grew up thinking I was worthless. Until the moment I met my friends, they made me strong."

She smiled at the small blonde standing a little to the side who was dabbling at her eyes with a handkerchief.

"And then I met you," she grasped her future husband's hand tighter, "and through your smile- I knew that all the pain was worth it. You made me complete." She slipped the gold band on his finger.

The groom smiled as he kissed his bride's forehead, "you make me everything that I am. You make the sun shine brighter in the mornings, you give me a reason to live. You're all I ever wanted, you *are* my life." He put his ring on her shaking finger as she smiled at him.

The blonde was now sobbing out right at their words.

The deputy commissioner smiled, no matter how strange their wedding party looked like- it was obvious to even the most casual observer how much the bride and groom loved each other. And the affection in the room was palpable as everyone's smiles were directed towards the two people getting married.

He cleared his throat, "by the power vested in me by the State of California, I officially pronounce you husband and wife."

And so it was, that in a small, kind of bland looking room- Faith Lehane a vampire slayer; became Faith Wood, vampire slayer and wife of a watcher.

**23. LA-3**

Disclaimer for this chapter in La-1. Nothing belongs to me, so don't sue.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! This is the last part of the LA chapters, next part will be in Forks.

"Oh holy shit on a stick," Faith breathed out. "That was fraking awesome!"

She and Robin just got done taking care of their part of the Circle, and they had come to the alley that Angel specified to see that Buffy and the Cullens were already there.

"Don't blaspheme," Buffy wiped off the blood from her sword.

Her sister slayer raised an eyebrow, "B, we're facing a freaking army- if there ever was a time for being blasphemous, it's now."

Emmett chortled over to the side, "this is so cool!"

Both girls looked at him, he shrugged "what? This is the most excitement I've gotten in a while."

"You've got weird relatives," Robin commented as he peeled back a bandage to look at a wound on his shoulder.

"Yeah, but I love them just the same," Buffy grinned as she hugged both Alice and Rosalie. The tall blonde looked grim as she surveyed the alley in front of them while the dark haired seer idly scratched her hair.

"Any sign of the others?" Buffy asked worriedly, looking around she couldn't see any of the AI team. No matter how much the two vampires might have pissed her off, she still didn't want to see them dead and she was kind of becoming fond of the others.

"Nah," Faith shook her head, a sliver of fear making her eyes darker.

There was a sound behind them like boxes crashing, the two slayers whipped around to see Angel and Spike coming towards them. 'Oh thank God,' Buffy thought.

"You know, for supernatural creatures- you guys make a shitload of noise when you move," Faith commented idly.

"Well, it's not like we're aiming for the element of surprise," Spike called out wearily.

"Anyone else?" Angel asked looking at the people in front of him.

Carlisle shook his head, "not so far."

"You guys feel the heat?" the dark haired vampire asked the Cullens.

They shifted as Alice looked at the sky, "trouble's coming."

Spike grinned, "finally got ourselves a decent brawl."

He whipped his head around and breathed out "Gunn…"

Sure enough, the former street punk turned lawyer was running towards them, carrying his battle axe. His gait was loping, he favored his right side, injuries making him look like an unbalanced drunk in a hurry.

"Dang! How did I know the fang boys would pull through?" he grinned weakly as he arrived. He looked at the slayers, "it's good to see you girls alive, always *did* want to fight beside a slayer."

"You're lucky we're on the same side guys, cause I was on *fire* tonight," he winked at the Cullen girls and slumped against the side of the alley clutching at his stomach.

"My game was tight," he was about to fall but Spike and Angel quickly helped him sit down before he could collapse.

"You're supposed to wear the red stuff on the inside Charlie boy," Spike looked with sadness at Gunn's wounds.

"Just hang on for a couple more minutes, Willow should be here with the spell ingredients," Buffy crouched beside the bleeding man and took his hand.

"Where's Red anyway?" Faith asked.

"Himalayas, should be back in about seven minutes- she'll be working the big mojo, cause frankly we're screwed otherwise," Buffy looked at her watch.

Angel looked dumbstruck, "what? Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"Aww, but you had the whole suicidal speech planned and I *just* didn't want to intrude on your big moment in the spotlight. *I* on the other hand have a sister to get through college and hopefully babies to pop out in a nice house on the beach," Buffy grinned.

"Oh? So cookie dough's cookies now?" Spike brightened up just as Angel elbowed him.

Buffy raised an eyebrow, "how do you know about that?"

"Poof told me," the blond vampire looked smug.

Buffy sheathed her more or less clean sword, no point in shining it just to get it dusty on vampire necks again, "yeah well- maybe I'm cookies, maybe I'm still dough but with the way things are going, neither your or Poof will find out about it."

Both the vampires stilled and then Spike grinned a large, gleeful smile "as long as it isn't the Poofter, then I'll be glad to call you my friend."

He took a couple of steps towards the amused Buffy, "I'm sorry for being such a thick bastard, but will you still be my friend? I've missed you slayer," he held out his hand.

Buffy looked at him, damnit she *had* missed him. He was funny, sarcastic and brutally honest. He was the type of friend that would tell you when you were being a stubborn asshole and then threaten to kill whoever hurt you. He did make dumb decisions from time to time, but Spike was definitely somebody that she wanted back in her life.

"Yeah, friends ,you dumb British vampire," she chuckled and pulled him into a hug.

Alice grinned as she saw Spike leer over Buffy's shoulder at the glum looking Angel, the Los Angeles team was a lot of fun and so far- things were progressing nicely, hopefully they'd be back in Forks before the morning.

Gunn coughed on the ground, " I hate to interrupt the tender moment, but any word on Wes?"

Illyria chose that moment to jump over the chain link fence behind Angel, she swooped into the midst of their group like a wet cyber punk angel, eyes flashing with foreign emotion and hands clutched into fists.

"Wesley's dead," she intoned.

Gunn began crying, a harsh, broken sound.

Angel looked heartbroken and Spike looked away from the group. Buffy clutched Faith's hand, she knew that the other girl still hoped to have a way of making things right with the watcher she had tortured. Now, there was no chance, Wesley Wyndham-Price was gone.

"I'm feeling grief for him," Illyria snapped her head up at the sound of the approaching crowds, she snarled "I wish to do more violence."

"Well, wishes happen to be horses today," Spike cocked his head at the sound of the approaching demon army.

Angel took out his broadsword, "among other things."

Everybody took in the sight of their enemies, there were hundreds, maybe thousands of demons slathering at the chance to rip into them. All sorts of breeds, all sizes, all united under the Wolfram and Hart banner.

"Ok, you guys will take the thirty thousand on the right," Gunn grinned cockily even as he struggled to stand up properly.

Illyria looked at him in her strangely sympathetic yet detached manner, "you're fading, you'll last ten minutes at best."

There was a popping sound and a familiar voice called out, "not if I can do anything about it."

Willow had arrived, she was carrying the axe she used to activate the potentials in her right hand and a black bag in her left. She was clothed in a black cloak, her red hair stood out in stark relief against the dark material.

"Hold this," she gave the items for Jasper to hold. He looked a little surprised as he looked over the axe, there was a look of awe on his face as he took in the craftsmanship of the weapon.

Willow swiftly crossed over to Gunn, she dropped onto her knees beside him, "look at me," she commanded and the man struggled to focus his gaze on her face.

"Nobody's going to die today if I can do anything about it," she murmured as a white light enveloped her hands, she struck both her palms against Gunn's skin as he arced against her touch screaming.

She withdrew her palms, the blood dripping from them looked almost obscene as the white light still coursed through her body, magic tainted the air with an electrical current that all the supernatural elements in the alley could feel.

Gunn gasped out as he opened his eyes, "girl, you got some serious power since we last saw you."

He quickly lifted his shirt to check on his injuries, Buffy breathed out in relief that the skin was unmarked. Willow had healed him.

Gunn grinned as he stood up on his own, he hugged the now white haired witch in front of him "thank you."

The demon army sounded even closer as Willow hugged him back.

She quickly threw off her cloak, the men eyed her as she was almost naked underneath. There was a leather band tied around her breasts and some kind of linen skirt that was almost indecent in it's length.

"Um, Will, what's with the naked look?" Buffy raised a hand.

The witch smiled at her, "the spell will require blood and herbs, I'll need as much skin open to the elements as possible. Plus demon guts are pretty hard to clean out of clothing, I can just throw this out after we're done."

She motioned to the Cullen girls, "I'll need a guard while I cast. I'm not going to be able to react to any threats while I'm calling on the elements, so I'll need somebody to look after me."

Rose looked at her solemnly as Alice nodded, "we'll be here."

There was a distinct roar as a dragon swooped overhead. Faith, Emmett and Jasper all looked up with excited looks on their faces. The dark haired slayer jumped up and clapped her hands with glee, "yo, Alice was right! There's a dragon to slay!"

The vampire brothers glanced at each other and smiled widely as they reached for their axes and swords that Buffy had insisted they carry into battle. There was only so much damage you could do with your hands, sparklepire or not.

Buffy hugged her uncle and Faith, "stay alive guys, after we're done with this- everybody can come to my place in Forks to regroup."

Carlisle smiled kindly, "I'm sure that we can host in our home, Esme's always loved guests and we *do* have more space."

Faith clapped Buffy on her back, "Yo, I almost forgot that you didn't have a home warming!"

The blonde slayer smiled ruefully, "Yeah, cause I was *just* waiting for an apocalypse to invite everybody over to Washington."

They hugged again.

Alice approached Angel silently, she looked at him "I don't see Lindsey or Lorne here."

His expression was guarded as he answered, "I didn't tell Lorne to kill Lindsey if that's what you're trying to ask. Either they're dead, or they're not coming."

"You wish," the familiar drawl came just as Lindsey dropped down to the ground from the ladder of the building they were all standing next to. He scratched his stubble and added, "asshole."

Angel sneered at him and motioned to Alice, "see? He's still alive," he did not look happy about that fact at all, "unfortunately."

"Lorne's waiting for us on the border of town, whoever survives can join him there after our little party," Lindsey tilted his face to the rain as if to wash away the evidence of the killing they had all committed that night. He nodded at Gunn and Illyria and greeted Spike with the one fingered salute of true friends.

He moved towards the two slayers, "ladies, it is *always* a pleasure to see you again."

Spike moved towards Angel, "in terms of a plan?"

"We fight."

"Bit more specific," Spike inclined his head towards where the demons began to overtake the barriers provided by the chain link fence and were moving towards them.

"Well, Willow's got the magics working," Angel glanced at where the white haired witch was beginning to float off the ground and the crackles of lighting that were dancing on her skin.

He cracked his neck, "and personally? I kind of want to slay the dragon before Faith or Buffy's cousins."

Jasper smiled widely as he saw the demonic vampires running towards them, "I bet you I can kill more than you," he told his brother.

Emmett inclined his head, "let's sweeten the deal. Whoever can kill the most vampires will buy dinner for everyone once we get home," he grinned as he motioned to his cousin who was swinging her sword in faster and faster strokes to warm up her muscles. "You know how Buffy eats right? And there are two of them here, so it's a *lot* of food."

Jasper snorted as he nodded his agreement to the terms of the bet.

Faith unsheathed the two katanas from behind her back, "this ain't the battle of Helms Deep, guys, and these aren't orcs."

Rose looked at her, "Lord of the Rings? Really?"

Faith shrugged as she decapitated the first vampire that had gotten close enough to her, "what? I read."

Buffy cackled as she flipped over their heads, "I always knew there was a geek just dying to come out from underneath all the leather."

Faith laughed as she charged at a couple of Borshniks, "let's go to work ladies and gentlemen!"

**24. LA-4**

Previous disclaimers apply.

Forks, Washington 4 a.m.

She dreamt.

There was so much blood and guts and violence. Buffy was dancing, laughter written in her face as she whirled with the sword, the dust from vampire beheadings almost looked like a whirlwind around her. Her blonde hair was a golden curtain as it flew around her body with her movements, it drew eyes like a beacon, signaling that everything was alright- that Buffy was unhurt.

Faith was a joy to watch with katanas, finally her fighting form had been perfected down to an art. She didn't take longer than necessary to kill off a single demon, stroke, kill and she would head to the next.

While Robin and Gunn were concentrating on the vampires who were easier to kill, stakes and blades flashing in and out, the slayers, the Cullens and Spike with Angel were taking on the demons.

Those imbued with mystical strength had a better chance of getting out alive, of killing monsters with whirling tentacles faster.

Dawn's view shifted to where she could see a bright white sphere floating above the ground, the familiar figure inside it made her smile- Willow had really come through for them, she was casting as she floated above the ground. It looked like something from a tv show, lighting crackled inside the sphere as her head tilted back and she screamed to the elements, invoking ancient gods and goddesses to protect their champions.

Rose and Alice were on the ground, keeping the witch protected.

The smaller vampire had two daggers that she wielded with almost expert-like proficiency, Dawn was glad to see that Buffy had really thought about their family's weapons, the seer was the smallest one of them all, so the daggers really compensated for her reach. She was extremely fast as she ducked and rolled nimbly under the terrifying monsters, and the daggers ensured that her speed made her the winner of countless fights with the oncoming monsters. She hacked with cold determination as her speed made her look like a small whirlwind of action.

Rose was swinging a battleaxe like nobody's business, it was shocking to see how efficiently the normally fussy vampire killed the demons. There was no flourish to her style like the slayers, she didn't revel in the violence like Spike and Angel- she got the job done and moved on.

Edward was perched with a longbow on the fire escape just a little bit above the melee, he kept a steady stream of arrows going at the vampires and demons that would get too close to his crew. His face was scarily blank as he kept shooting, his hand was steady even as some of the scarier creatures would get close enough to touch his feet.

Lindsey and Gunn were fighting side by side, back to back. Lindsey was the far better fighter, but Gunn looked like he had a lot more energy. From time to time they would switch their positions, getting to fight different demons, recharging from the steady stream of battle.

Carlisle's blonde hair flashed in and out of battle, Dawn sighed, thank God he was okay.

There was a roar and laughter overriding the sound. A huge dragon swooped into the mess of demons, Dawn squinted as she saw that Emmett and Jasper were riding the creature. They signaled to each other and in perfect synchronicity stabbed it in the neck, the dragon gave a roar of pain as it released a trail of fire immediately killing the vampires down below.

The huge body fell from the air and Dawn gave a mental gasp as she saw her cousins leap agilely before they could get crushed and land in a crouch, immediately brandishing their weapons- they went to work on the other demons.

"We got the dragon!" Emmett screamed to Faith who laughed wildly.

And then Willow screamed even louder than before, a fierce primal bellow of pain that echoed shockingly through the combatants. Her white hair was crawling with green offshoots, the color of new leafery, of rebirth. Her eyes snapped open, the jade of them shocking. She raised her palm up in the floating sphere and in a voice that echoed with thousand years of history she said "thicken."

Alley behind the Hyperion- same time

The battle scene slowed down, it was like pressing pause on an old VCR. The demons were still moving, but in very slow motion. Their snarling faces were contorted in masks of rage and battle lust as their various hands and tentacles reached out for enemies that were no longer there.

Everybody stopped as Willow floated back down to the ground, her hair had gone completely green by now and the magic crackling on her skin was a lavender color.

Alice and Rose looked worriedly as their charge waded into the crowd of demons, Buffy signaled for them to wait as she watched the wicca look at the creatures around her in disgust.

Faith was bent over panting as she watched the proceedings, Robin helped her straighten up as she asked "Red? What's going on?"

Willow whipped her head to stare at the dark haired slayer, Faith flinched involuntarily. It wasn't Rosenburg in there anymore, whatever power Willow had invoked was terrifying in it's intensity.

"You have done well daughter of Sineya, it's time for the earth to cleanse itself of these abominations," whoever was riding Willow smiled creepily.

"Um, thanks?" Faith offered feebly.

Willow took a couple of steps further into the demon crowd as she brought her hands up into the air, the magic thickened, the green cloud visibly gathered above above her head as the witch arced within it's grasp.

Spike and Angel began to convulse and gasp for air as the atmosphere charged with the gathering energies.

Buffy ran and dropped beside them, she lifted her head up "what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Willow looked at her, "it is their reward, they have done enough to deserve mortality, to come back as my children. I *will not* allow the Powers to keep on promising things they won't deliver, it is my turn to give gifts to the deserving. They are Champions, they will retain their strength and speed. But they will be human once again."

Buffy gasped, she knew about Angel's deepest wish, his whole quest for redemption and his desire to be human once more. Both he and Spike had their souls, they deserved to be rewarded for everything they had done.

"Who *are* you?" Robin held his wife's hand as he stared at Willow who was swirling faster and faster in the air.

"Gaia," the entity taken over Willow's body breathed out as the earth's magic thundered in the alley and spread out.

For a moment it felt like nobody could breathe, the air was impossibly thick, impossibly hot and it constricted the chests of the humans. Spike and Angel screamed in impossible agony as Buffy had to keep her eyes closed, she felt like her skin was on fire but it was bearable. A brief thought flickered in her mind that she shouldn't have brought her family into this mess, into this pain. She didn't know what they were going through, her ears were popping with the building pressure and she felt like she'd throw up if she opened her mouth.

And then there was blissful silence, a calm unlike any other descended upon her. Buffy opened her eyes, the alley looked like a scene from a horror movie. Jasper stood huddled with Alice, Emmett was clutching Rosalie to his chest and Carlisle had his head tilted to the sky with Edward by his side. The normally brooding vampire had a wide grin on his face as his lips made out 'Bella.'

Spike was crouched down on the ground with his hands around his temples as Angel lay prone next to him, gasps rising from a chest that was once again moving in time with a heart that beat for the first time in two hundred and forty years.

Faith was standing in Robin's embrace with a beatific smile on her face.

Illyria was standing guard over a hunched Gunn, a defiant look on her blue freckled features. Lindsey was on his knees as black symbols flew around him.

But it was the sight of the previously terrifying demons that really shocked Buffy. They all looked like they were made out of ash, like a fire had burned their bodies, locked them in the positions they were first frozen in and sizzled the life from their insides. A memory of watching Interview with a Vampire with Dawnie flickered in her head, the scene with the frozen Kirsten Dunst in the locked cellar was oddly reminiscent of what she was seeing.

Willow had stopped spinning in the air and the green was beginning to recede from her hair, she looked like she was sleeping on a bed of nothing, a peaceful smile on her face as she slowly descended towards the ground. Buffy ran to catch her, she dropped to her knees as her friend's weight settled into her arms.

"Close your eyes my daughter," a female voice echoed in her mind. Buffy did as she noticed the rest of her friends do so also.

A gentle breeze began to flow through the alley, dissipating the smell of blood and death and violence. It smelled like fresh mowed grass, like the ocean, like home. Buffy tilted her face forward to it, even with her closed eyes she reveled in the feel of the gentle wind caressing her skin.

"Live, for me," the female voice intoned once more and Buffy had the mental image of her mother kissing her cheek before the first day of school, of Dawn graduating college with a huge grin on her face as she bounced towards her sister, of a blonde toddler laughing as she tickled her sides. She felt a love like never before, all encompassing, all powerful.

She opened her eyes as a small tear slipped down her cheek, the alley was clear of all the demons and it was just her family and friends that stood there. It was time to go home.

**25. who's going where?**

Dawn's eyes flew open, she didn't know what just happened but the part of her that could always feel Buffy knew that her family was alive. She sighed as she pushed her hair out of her face, she must have fallen asleep in the living room as they watched DVD's.

She peeked around the room, Jake was passed out snoring lightly next to her on the couch. Bella was on her stomach, sleeping on a couple of comforters piled on top of each other on the floor. Dawn smiled as she stood up and placed the comforter she had used back on the couch, she looked at her watch- it was four forty in the morning. Coffee would definitely be of the good right now she decided as she padded into the kitchen.

Her eyes widened as she took in Esme who was reading a book at the table. She smiled as she looked at the woman she had begun to consider as an aunt. A cuddly, perpetually twenty six year old looking vampire aunt, but an aunt nonetheless.

"Can't sleep?" Esme asked moving to put on the electric kettle.

"Nah, I had the weirdest dream- something about Willow floating and turning green?" Dawn put two teaspoons of instant coffee into her favorite cup.

"Did you hear anything from them?" she asked Esme.

Her aunt nodded, "Alice called me a couple of hours ago. She said everyone was okay and to tell you that Buffy punched both Spike and Angel for their stupidity. Emmett thinks that your sister's friends are like a soap opera though he *does* find them exciting, Jazz is excited about the fighting. Rosie and Edward apparently got some shopping done before the apocalypse, Alice was very happy about that for some strange reason."

Esme smiled as she talked about her children.

Dawn realized that while *she* was worried about her sister in an apocalypse, Buffy had almost a decade's of constant fighting experience to fall back on. The Cullens on the other hand were loners by nature, a peaceful family that rarely got involved in fights and politics.

She squeezed Esme's cold hand, "they're fine, Buffy won't let anything happen to them."

Her aunt laughed "that's funny, I was just about to say the same thing about your sister."

Strong arms enveloped her from behind, Dawn smiled as she snuggled into Jake's body.

Last night was spent talking about the subtle differences in their worlds. Neither Jake nor Bella had freaked out about the existence of demonic vamps and Esme had told them about Carlisle and the start of the Olympic Coven. She told them about Wesley making the deal for this son's soul and the souls of his future childer. This had healed the last of the rift between Bella and Jake, the concrete proof that the Cullens had souls finally gave Jake peace about his best friend's decision to tie her fate in with a vampire's.

The only thing that freaked them out and made Dawn laugh though, was their surprise over how tiny, little Buffy was a hero, a force to be reckoned with.

"Hey Mrs.C," Jake murmured sleepily as he moved to sit beside Dawn.

"Hi Jacob, did you sleep well?" Esme smiled at the young man.

He stretched his large body as several vertebra popped in his spine, "I'll sleep better once I know that everyone's safe at home." Dawn grinned at his unintentional slip of the tongue, Jake was beginning to *really* accept the Cullens and it showed in his worry.

Dawn's phone beeped somewhere in the living room, she quickly ran out of the kitchen in her haste almost tripping over the sleeping Bella.

There was a text message from Buffy. 'Apocalypse Over, :) Everybody's alright. Will be home before ten a.m. Make up the five beds, preferably in the Cullen home- they have more space, and I'm pretty sure Esme's got groceries there. Hug her and everyone for me. I love you, B.'

"woo hoo!" Dawn squealed as she jumped up and down, a startled Bella grinning beside her nervously.

"What? What is it?" Esme called out anxiously as she beheld the bouncing teen having run out of the kitchen right after her.

"Everybody's okay and they'll be home in about five hours, come on- we need to go to your place. Five people are coming back with them, we need to get the house ready" she babbled.

Dawn paused from where she was bouncing on the couch and whooping in joyous delight, she winked at Jacob and threw her five ten frame to land solidly in his arms. He laughed as he twirled her, the atmosphere in the house had rapidly become lighter with the news. Nobody was hurt, everybody was fine. For the first time ever, Jacob Black was happy that nothing had happened to the Cullens. He briefly wondered how Sam would feel about his changed feelings for their mortal enemies, Jake decided to put this thought away for another day.

"Oh thank God," Esme breathed out as she squeezed a wildly grinning Bella to her. Carlisle and the kids were okay and they were all coming home.

"Oh screw you peaches, I *deserved* this- even the earth goddess said so," Spike sneered as he shoved Angel. The blonde ex-vampire was surprised to see that his shove which would have previously sent his grandsire sailing now had the effect of making the other man stumble lightly. "Bloody, human bodies" he mumbled to himself staring at his hands with resignation.

"Don't worry, you're going to get your strength back, it'll just take some time for your bodies to get used to being alive again," Alice moved in to take his arm.

"You think?" he asked her hopefully.

"I know so, seer remember?" she pinched him playfully.

He laughed, there was something so innocent, so pure about Alice that she reminded him of Dru during one of her better days. He liked the vampire seer, she had seen through the cocky demeanor right down to the man underneath and he found that he wanted to be her friend. Besides, her hubby looked just like the sort of bloke one needed to get drunk to get him to open up about past exploits. And Spike always did like a challenge.

"So what are our plans now?" Faith asked.

After the scene in the alley, the whole group had decided to reconvene back in Spike's apartment.

Emmett and Rosalie took their previous spot on the chair, cuddling as they watched people talk.

Angel brooded near the now open window and Spike was emptying the fridge to test out his new human taste buds.

Willow was laid out in the bedroom, resting after pulling off the big magics, Carlisle and Edward were monitoring her life signs.

Jasper was looking through Spike's library, a ghost of a smile on his normally expressionless face.

Buffy had volunteered to do a last minute clean up of any demons straggling behind after the apocalypse, Gunn, Illyria and Lindsey all went with her.

Faith continued, "I mean, where's everyone going after this?"

Angel spoke up from where he was basking in the feeling of the sun rising, the rays hadn't broken through the barrier yet but he could still feel the warmth in the air changing. "I think me and Spike have to get new identities set up first of all, it's the twenty first century, you need ID's to get anywhere."

Spike nodded, "yeah, as much as it pains me to say this- the Great Poofter's right. We need social security numbers, passports- the whole nine yards."

Angel grimaced, "are you ever going to stop with the nicknames?"

His grandchilde raised a surprised eyebrow, "why would I? Cause we're human now?"

"Well yeah."

"Not a chance, you'll be the grand poof till the day you die," Spike inclined his head, "which granted will be a little sooner than we had previously thought, but that's even better- now there's no chance of you living forever." He looked a little giddy at the thought that Angel would die pretty soon by their standards even if he led an exceptionally safe and healthy life.

Buffy twirled the stake in her hands nervously, Willow would be sending them home in two hours after her nap. The wicca looked a little stoned after her little invoking of Gaia behind the Hyperion, she kept babbling something about ice cream, orgasms and shrubs once she regained the use of her faculties. She was sleeping off the rush currently, Carlisle had promised to monitor her just in case anything went downhill, Buffy was keeping her cell phone turned on for any news. She had just sent off a text message to her sister and was trying to find a way to open a conversation with the utterly perplexing man at her side.

She looked slightly at Lindsey from the corner of her eye, after her little vision from Gaia- she had figured out that he was most probably the future father of her child. She had given it some thought and she knew that outside of Spike and Angel, the only three possible candidates were Wesley, Gunn or Lindsey. Her daughter was blonde, so it ruled out Gunn unfortunately. Buffy *did* like the tall streetwise hunter, he was funny, kind, loyal- sticking by through all of Angel's escapades he definitely was one of the most stalwart friends the brooding vampire had.

Wesley was now dead, and though she was sad because yet another human life was destroyed in the ongoing fight against evil- Buffy had noticed that Alice wasn't devastated by the passing of the watcher. She knew that her cousin was keeping the identity of her soul mate secret and the fact that she was so calm was encouraging.

Lindsey was somebody that she had never really thought about. She knew that he used to work for Wolfram and Hart, she knew that he had a huge vendetta against Angel and didn't get along with Spike. Other than that, the most she had ever heard about him was both her exes calling him a 'tiny, bitter Texan.' And there was the very disconcerting fact that whenever she heard his drawl, a shiver would begin working down her spine, stealing her breath away and making her heart beat just a little bit faster.

"So um, are you actually *from* Texas?" she began incongruously.

Lindsey shot a startled look at her, "I grew up in Texas, but I was actually born in Oklahoma."

Buffy nodded, "oh, really? What was that like?"

He raised an eyebrow, "it was good."

There was an awkward silence during which Buffy wanted to mentally smack her head against any railings they might pass. 'Dumb, dumb, dumb!' Why didn't she just go ahead and ask about wearing a cowboy hat.  
So she did.

"Have you ever worn a cowboy hat?"

Lindsey started to look a cross between amused and a little wary by her line of questioning, "yeah, a couple of times..." He paused "not that I'm not taking pleased by your sudden interest in my formerly evil person, but uh- what's going on?"

Buffy laughed nervously, "what? I can't become interested in people who help me stop the apocalypse?"

Lindsey looked at her again,something shifted in his bright blue eyes and Buffy could hear his heart skip a beat, after a few seconds pause he called out to Gunn and Illyria in front of them, "hey Chuckie boy! Why don't we separate for a while and cover some different grounds?" he increased his speed to catch up to the surprised Gunn.

He clapped Illyria on the back, "listen, why don't you and Buffy take the north side while we do south? We'll meet back with the others in twenty."

Illyria pulled back a lip and snarled as she shook of his hand, "you dare besmirch me with your filth? You presume to tell me where to go?"

Lindsey shook his head, "nah, I'm not besmirching anything these days, what with girlfriends dying left and right and vampires regaining their souls willy nilly. Just merely suggesting," he grinned cockily.

Buffy sighed, of course she freaked out the poor guy by going on about a cowboy hat. But honestly, how was she supposed to go about this? 'Hi, we're actually soulmates because my many times great uncle sold his soul to a demon and now we're supposed to get together and have a really cute kid.' Really? How crazy can one sound in the course of a day?

She looked at the three people ahead of them, Lindsey was rapidly putting distance between them, dragging a bewildered Gunn with him.

Illyria cocked her head to the side while she waited, a look of alien curiosity on her face.

Buffy walked up to the standing god-king, Illyria motioned to the disappearing men ahead of them. "I do not understand, his body temperature rises when he looks at you and yet he hastens to distance himself from you? I was led to believe that this was not the general procedure when it comes to human courting practices."

The blonde perked up, so Lindsey *was* attracted to her! Well then, this definitely changed things.

"Come on god-king, I'm pretty sure that there's a nest two blocks ahead of us," she grinned at Illyria and began almost skipping to the destination.

Willow's spell would end in little less than an hour, and if he was really as important to her as Alice claimed he would be- Buffy was going to really try and figure out a way to make it work. Even if she had to drag him back with her to Forks kicking and screaming. She *deserved* a happy ending damn it!

The door banged open, a grimy yet happily smiling Buffy strode in followed by Illyria who had a look of burgeoning respect on her face for the petite slayer. The blonde's clothes were ripped, slashes showing plenty of golden skin underneath, dirt smudged on her face just made her look like a centerfold for a particularly creative photographer.

Everybody who was still awake looked at the two last additions to the apocalypse clean up crew as Faith and Emmett had taken to calling their group. The dark haired slayer, Spike, Emmett and Lindsey were currently playing a game of poker. Faith smirked as she took in the lawyer frankly appraising the almost naked blonde slayer who was practically bouncing from the post-slayage rush.

"Got the double h's bad, huh B?" Faith called out.

"Yeah, and the second one seems to be getting worse than the first," her sister slayer answered. Faith blinked, whoa. The other girl had never been candid about her sexual desires and the fact that she could so easily admit to being horny in mixed company was really something new.

Buffy bent over Spike's fridge, blonde head disappearing within it's depths to peer at the food inside.

"You got any chocolate?" she called out to the grinning vampire.

He got up and sauntered to help her look, "guess what love?"

"What?" she murmured biting into a hunk of cheese.

"I still got the vampire nose," he winked at her.

"Oh," Buffy glanced automatically at Lindsey. Spike began chuckling in earnest as she punched his arm.

"Ow! Watch the slayer strength there!" he yelped.

She stuck her tongue out at him.

It was true, the closer it got to the spell's ending time the more she was beginning to feel attracted to Lindsey. She thanked God that she had talked about it with Alice before she came, because knowing her past insecurities she would no doubt think that the only reason why she had feelings for the man was because of a magic spell. After having spent some time with her cousin, she now knew that the spell worked as a kind of beacon. It didn't stir up the feelings within you for your mate, it made you find your soul mate faster.

"You know that Angel's going to freak right?" Spike snickered.

"Eh, I really don't care at this point." Buffy shrugged.

She grabbed a banana and a couple of chocolate chip cookies, stopping in the middle of the room she called out. "Anyone that wants to come home with me is more than welcome, we've got the space." She turned to Spike, "the invitation goes double for you."

She nodded coolly at a gaping Angel as she walked off to find an empty shower, it really wasn't her problem what the brooding former vampire did from now on. Angel had never been a friend to her, he had always played the Romeo to her Juliet, a star crossed lover that signaled heartbreak and drama. There was never a period of just jokes and laughs with him, a tension undercut all of their interactions.

She meant it when she invited Spike, she knew that Xander had issues with him and that Giles had tried to kill him. Angel, even after his brief stint as Angelus still garnered more respect with the Council heads. If he decided to go with Willow to see Giles, she wouldn't be too upset.

As she closed the door behind her, Spike sneered at Angel, "she *still* likes me better than you!"

Angel flipped him the bird and resumed staring sullenly out the window.

Willow's door opened gently and a sleepy redhead padded out. She looked ready for whatever was coming next as she smiled at the grinning Spike.

"So have you guys decided who's coming with who?" she asked the assorted AI team members.

Angel raised a hand, "I think I should come with you to see Giles, I need to have a serious talk with him. Plus I want to check in on some family in Ireland."

Spike sputtered, "I thought you killed off your whole family!"

Angel began examining his nails with a fake nonchalance that wasn't fooling anyone. "Yeah well, Angelus thought it would be much more evil to tell people that he killed off the whole family. He uh, he let his little sister go. She had a long line of descendants, I've been keeping track of them with letters, they think that there's a branch of the family tree living in LA."

Gunn began laughing, "Oh man, that's the funniest thing I've heard today."

Spike smirked as he stole another look at Lindsey who had resumed his card game after Buffy left, "just you wait Chuck, the fun isn't over yet."

"So who's going with Angel?" Gunn stopped laughing long enough to ask.

Spike rolled back his shoulders, "Imma go with the slayer, Buffy said I'm welcome at her home and to be honest? I don't feel muchly like seeing the old mother country."

Angel didn't look surprised at this revelation.

Gunn began shuffling, "uh Angel? Brah? I got some family up in Seattle I wanna see, I mean, I almost died tonight you know? I want to make things right with them."

Angel looked sad but nodded resignedly at the news that Gunn would be going with Buffy's group.

Faith motioned to her and Robin, "we're going back to New York. Our cat needs to be picked up from our neighbor."

Spike snorted, "you've become so domestic, I swear it wasn't you anymore."

She flipped him off and smacked a kiss against Robin's cheek.

Illyria stepped forward next to Angel, "I will go with my dark haired pet. I will travel this world that the muck have built for themselves, perhaps I shall see how they conquered the lesser demons."

Angel looked at her gratefully.

Everyone stared at Lindsey, he coughed as he desperately thought over his options.

Emmett and Jasper rose up at that moment, "our family has been searching for a lawyer to put on a retainer for some time now, and we were actually *just* about to offer the job to Lindsey." The bigger vampire grinned at everyone in the room. Alice had told them about their cousin's connection to the blonde haired man in front of them and they promised themselves that they would do whatever it took to make her happy.

Lindsey surveyed the Cullens who looked as inconspicuous as possible. "Fine, right. I'm going with them then."

He rose to clap a hand on Angel's shoulder, "it's been fun, let's not make a habit of it."

Alice raised a valid question.

"Where's Lorne?"

"Oh uh, he said that he'll join in one of the groups in about a month or so. He's going soul searching," Gunn explained.

"Huh, somehow I have a feeling that we're going to miss the big green demon the most," Rose commented in the silence that ensued.

**26. Settling in**

Disclaimer on Ch.1

Um, blatantly gratuitous fangirl scene at the end of the chapter. Just a warning.

Sometimes she wondered whether her sister was crazy, she had brought home a formerly evil, former vampire; a demon hunter with spunk to spare; a morally ambiguous lawyer (which wasn't such a contradiction in terms) and the rest of their snickering family who looked like little kids after a sugar rush. She swore that she actually saw Emmett bouncing around outside as he recreated a fight with a Kvol'ho for an appropriately awed Jake and a snickering Jasper. Willow had decided to stay in Forks for a while, she and Buffy had begun talking again and Dawn was pleased to see that the redhead was making overtures to help return their friendship back to a place of neutral territory.

Alice approached her with a cup of hot chocolate, "here you go Dawnie, I don't want you to be cold."

Dawn smiled as she took it, "you guys are amazing, you've learned how to make hot chocolate for us, you've helped with an apocalypse. I swear, you're like the best family a girl could have."

Alice grinned as she hugged the taller girl to her, her body stayed cool throughout the whole exchange and Dawn found that she was used to the marble smoothness of her family's embraces.

"Hey, what's family for?" the small seer murmured as she laughed at her husband's antics in the backyard. Spike had joined the trio of men outside and it was beginning to look like both he and Jazz were recreating the good bye scene with Angel. Jasper was brooding exaggeratedly near the rose bushes while Spike flounced around with a limpid hand near his forehead. The girls couldn't hear what they were saying but it must have been pretty damn funny, because Jake and Emmett were nearly rolling on the ground with laughter.

"What are those idiots doing now?" Rose grumbled as she walked down the stairs. Dawn flashed a glance at her, the blonde's hair was as immaculate as ever but she had a wicked smirk on her face that wasn't present as often before Los Angeles. The trip had been good for Rosalie, it had helped her loosen up, gain some perspective on her life and just generally become a happier person. Dawn was glad, she loved both her cousins, but Rose made it difficult to feel close to her on some days.

"Apparently, Spike's decided that since Jake missed out on the Buffy and Angel show- he and Jazz were going to recreate the whole thing, Jazz does a surprisingly good Angel," she cheekily replied as Rose flew to the window to see.

Spike was fluttering his lashes coquettishly while Jazz furrowed his eyebrows while his hair stuck up from his head more than usual.

Jake was sitting on the ground gasping with laughter as Emmett snickered on amused.

"Do you think it was a good idea bringing them all back here? For some reason, I just keep thinking that they're going to take Forks apart, they're just far too chummy," Dawn commented as she sipped her beverage.

"Eh, Jazz and Emmett needed new friends. There was only so many games of rock paper scissors they could play over the years," Alice shrugged.

"So…" Willow muttered feebly.

The silence between the two of them stretched, fitting into the room's cracks like a blanket of uncomfortable accusations, of years of silence, of love gone and death shadowing their every move.

"Did you like the spell I did for your cousins' bloodlust?" she offered.

Buffy grinned as she nodded, "yeah, it was great. Now they can actually have complete control over themselves with humans around, they're not likely to do anything dumb."

Willow smiled and there was another uncomfortable pause. Both girls looked anywhere but at each other.

"Do you know why I left?" Buffy finally broke the silence.

"I do…" Willow whispered with a tortured look in her green eyes.

"It's the same reason I left for the Himalayas, I haven't been back to London in about a year," the wicca wiped a tear from her eyes.

Buffy frowned as she *really* took in her friend's appearance, there were lines around her eyes that shouldn't have shown up for another five, seven years. Now that she wasn't working the magics, she could see that Willow had grey hairs, shockingly visible in the red mass that fell past her shoulders.

She took the other girl's hand, "what happened Will?"

Willow raised her eyes to meet Buffy's, "everything. I had to kill Kennedy... We were on scouting mission in Colorado- nothing bad was supposed to happen. We accidentally came upon a sorcerer doing a demon uprising in the forests," she gasped as tears began to flow freely, Buffy guessed that this was the first time that Willow had really allowed herself to cry this much.

"I called for backup, I threw as much magic at him as I could, the power began pulling me under, I could feel the darkness seeping into my soul," her sobs were getting harsher, more broken.

"But there was already a barrier in place, he was protected. I opened a link with Giles, I tried to get him to send help, to do anything. There were literally seconds ticking down to the uprising, there would have been an army of protected demons walking the earth. He told me that he found the ritual, it was in it's last stages and the only thing that would have protected it was the willing sacrifice of a chosen warrior," Willow's hands were shaking as she fidgeted with the edge of the comforter.

Buffy held her breath, no matter how much she may have disliked Kennedy in Sunnydale, the other girl was still a slayer. And as a slayer, she would have done anything she could to keep the earth safe.

There was such pain swimming in Willow's eyes, guilt, shame, sorrow "I was so frantic with what was going on, I didn't remember to close my link to Ken. We had done a bonding ceremony about a year previously, we were always in each others' heads, in each others' hearts. And because I forgot to close down my link with her before I contacted Giles, she heard what was needed."

And there it was, Buffy knew what happened. Willow continued, in a broken whisper "she took her dagger, she kissed me before I could stop her and she cut her own throat on the boundary with the rising. The sorcerer absorbed all the magics floating around, I guess it was too much cause he basically exploded. And all I could do was sit there and stare at my love's broken and bloody body."

Buffy lunged forward and enveloped her redheaded friend into a hug, no matter what happened she could still see the remains of the shy, soft spoken girl that helped her when she first moved to Sunnydale. The woman in front of her was scarily powerful, had experienced so much, lost almost as much as Buffy herself and was still fighting the good fight any way she could.

Willow squeezed her back and took a deep breath, "you know what the Council ruled Kennedy's death as? A necessary sacrifice. Instead of mobilizing all their forces, instead of taking the chances that warriors who were trained to do battle would get hurt- they decided that a twenty two year old woman's life was expendable. Giles didn't know about our link, he just hoped that I would be able to tell my wife that she needed to die."

Buffy blinked as she processed the information, "uh Will? This doesn't really instill any faith in the new Council."

Willow snorted derisively, "they're not evil Buffy. They're just willing to do whatever it takes now. Their first priority are the new slayers, but they will do whatever it takes in the war against evil."

"Huh, and they're doing good?" the disbelief could be heard in the oldest living slayer's voice.

"Yeah, they are. They're just more ruthless about it now. But they do real good. I just couldn't do it anymore, after Ken's death- and everybody acting like it was the right thing to do. I just left, went to a retreat in the Himalayas and I've been there ever since. Getting back in touch with the earth, meditating, communing with Gaia."

Buffy tucked back a red strand of hair from Willow's face, "yeah- the whole earth's your homey now. That thing you did in the alley in LA was incredible, thank you for helping."

Willow shrugged as she laughed a watery, broken sound "heh, it's what scared witches who hide in mountain retreats do. They come back as needed to channel scary earth goddesses and kick a little demon butt."

"Oh Will, you're more than welcome to stay with me for as long as you need, you know that right?" Buffy breathed out as she enveloped the redhead into a hug once more.

"Are you sure about that?" Willow smiled nervously.

"Yeah, yeah- I am. You shouldn't be alone," Buffy stood up slowly from the bed they were sitting on.

Willow followed her, and before Buffy could move out of the room, she placed a hand on her shoulder. "Listen, I never told you how sorry I was. But I am, because I finally get it. I get the pain, I get the loneliness. I've lost Tara and Kennedy because of a choice I made, but you've been losing to this life for as long as you could because you couldn't leave. I shouldn't have been so angry with you when you decided to build a life for yourself and Dawn."

Buffy sighed with the guilt of a decade gone past, "yeah, you made a choice. To help *me*."

Willow nodded thoughtfully, "and knowing everything that I've lost, everything that's gone. I'd still make that choice all over again."

Buffy smiled as some of her guilt alleviated, maybe it was time to start rebuilding old broken bridges. Maybe it was time for Buffy to embrace some of her past.

"Nice place you've got here," Lindsey commented as he ran a hand on the maple desk in front of him.

Carlisle eyed him silently, the human was a lot smarter than he first looked to be- the glib jokes and constant antagonism with Angel were like a mask, a veil over the cunning and intelligence hidden beneath. He reminded him of Buffy that way, the small blonde was just as intelligent and hidden beneath the layers of jokes and sarcasm was a ruthlessness that almost shocked Carlisle in that alley behind the Hyperion hotel.

"I will pay you a third of what you were getting at Wolfram and Hart, you'll have a choice between either living at the house or getting an apartment in town. It looks like our family will be expanding, knowing Buffy she'll want to make sure that her friends are alright, and if she can have some of them live with her- it will be all for the better. So I won't be too surprised if Spike and Charles decide to stay. You, of course are more than welcome to stay within our home also."

Carlisle steepled his fingers as he saw Lindsey ponder over the proposition, he knew that the other man really didn't have anywhere else to go and the money was still excellent.

"Do you make it a point of having your employees live within your home?" Lindsey asked with just a touch of snark coloring his usual drawl.

Carlisle smiled gently, "I think you'll find that my family are different than others, and we're certainly likely to be a very strange employer for you. We'll need appropriate documents drawn up as the kids will need to enter colleges, we'll need you to help with a lot of the paperwork that a regular lawyer wouldn't be able to fathom."

Lindsey thought some more, he had an excellent education, he had worked for one of the world's largest law firms for a number of years- never mind that the law firm was clearly evil, he still had the experience to get hired within any metropolitan city.

But there was still a large part of him that missed the warmth of his home in Texas, the loudness of visiting relatives in Oklahoma, of family dinners and squabbles with friends.

He would never admit it to anyone, but he was fond of the AI team and the two of its people were currently staying with the Cullens. He and Angel would always have an antagonistic relationship, they just couldn't coexist within the same space without trying to off one another every couple of days or so.

But Spike and Gunn were a different question, he found the blonde vampire very funny and his hate/love relationship with the brooding master of the Aurelius line was strangely reminiscent of his own with the man. Gunn was a decent guy, loyal, funny. Lindsey actually felt a kinship with him, both of them had extremely humble beginnings and both would always feel just a little bit out of place within the upper echelons because of that fact.

During the time he spent with them, Lindsey had begun to feel a connection with the Cullens. They were a true family, a unit into their own, funny, snarky and utterly devoted to each other. It didn't faze him in the least when Buffy explained them to be a different breed of vampires, frankly, working for Wolfram and Hart he was used to different demons, used to being cordial with them. The Cullens though were a family, and the part of Lindsey that still missed his, liked the idea of working for them.

"Yeah, alright. I agree." Lindsey Mcdonald rose from his chair to shake a smiling Carlisle's hand. He deliberately didn't focus on the fact that not once during his deliberations over the decision did he think about Buffy Summers and what her proximity might mean for him. During the last few days, his pull towards her had increased exponentially but he would be damned before he went after another of Angel's exes. The whole affair with Darla proved that they would only choose the brooding vampire in the end, no matter how much pain he brought into their lives.

Charlie smoothed his hair. Ever since Buffy had come back from her trip to LA, he had felt that he needed to talk to the blonde woman he was getting to know. No matter how much he liked her, there was always a part of her that was closed to him and it saddened Charlie to realize that he would most likely never be able to see all the sides to Buffy Summers.

She was beautiful no doubt, a whirlwind of energy, a thousand laughs a minute, constantly joking, smiling, warm hearted person. But Charlie wanted to know the darker side to her too, he wanted to know the reason for the sadness that would sometimes expose itself in her actions, in her glances and he had a sinking feeling that he wasn't the person she would eventually open up fully to. So after Bella had come home, smiling about something with words of reassurance that Buffy was back from her emergency trip- he had made a decision. He was older, more mature, it would be up to him to take the burden of breaking things off.

This morning he had woken up to the smell of cinnamon oatmeal, his daughter was almost bouncing with energy as she asked for permission to spend the day with the Cullens. He had agreed to drive her up there himself, Bella had told him that Buffy was spending almost all her time at the big house, and he knew that he needed to talk to her as soon as possible.

"I'm going to go in dad, okay?" Bella looked at him worriedly as he sat in the driver's seat staring at the large, light house in front of them. She knew that her father was most likely going to break up with Buffy, and she knew that this decision was probably for the best but she still worried about the both of them. She could see that there was something between Buffy and Lindsey, the looks they would cast each other when they thought nobody was looking were extremely telling and the plain longing was heady whenever she would walk in on the two of them together.

"I'll catch up, I just need to make a call," Charlie smiled at her. Bella bounced off with a wave and he dialed Ned to let him know that he'd be a little late into the station.

He slowly opened his door and stretched his body, bones popped in places stiffened after too much time spent sitting. He was about to go through the front door when he heard shouting and laughing from the side of the house. Charlie looked between the front door and the area from where the noise seemed to be coming from, he quickly made a decision and headed for the backyard.

It was such a beautiful day, freak weather for Washington December. It was almost in the twenties though the sun was currently hidden behind some of the clouds. The whole family decided to make it an event, they had piled into the backyard close to the woods. Esme was really getting into her role as the mother figure to the extended clan that now included the Cullens, the Summers sisters, Gunn, Lindsey, Spike and Bella. Carlisle had suggested that they have a barbecue outside, and the humans enthusiastically agreed. So Esme was currently laughing as she flirted with her husband while cooking ribs on the grill. It was amazing how many recipes she had perfected since Buffy and Dawn had come into their life, and it was a joy for her to know that her cooking was so enthusiastically appreciated by all involved.

Rose and Emmett had gone into Seattle the previous day, looking for the demon bars that Lorne recommended. They had bought the otter blood spiked with Lorne's secret ingredient that he developed with his chef in Caritas. Apparently the green demon was something of an entrepreneur, the blood was sold across most major cities- the vampires loved it, it had an extra kick and was a very pleasant change from having to hunt every couple of days.

Buffy was extremely thankful that she had her sunglasses on as she blatantly ogled the half naked Lindsey.

It was Jake's idea to play basketball, and the Cullen brothers enthusiastically agreed. It was two three person teams against each other and as the game progressed, the humans began taking off their shirts as they got too hot in the freak warmth. Rose and Alice hooted and hollered and their husbands complied into getting just as naked as their live brethren, Emmett had to forcibly take off Edward's shirt but he now too was playing in only a pair of sweats. So now the young women were sitting in the chaises, each was sipping her cocktail of choice as they watched the men play. It was Jake, Lindsey and Gunn against Edward, Emmett and Jasper.

The vampires were deadly pale but all had ripped bodies, Emmett was the biggest one, like a huge, scarily agile bear he would leap and dunk the ball with a taunt thrown to the others. Jasper was lean, all whipcord muscle and speed. His eyes flashed with glee as he ran the court, thanks to Willow's spells he could control his blood lust around the humans and it allowed him to finally loosen up enough to properly enjoy their company.

Gunn was tall, about six two, he had various scars running through his torso. Even though, he was still hot as hell as he grinned, sweat flying off his six pack as he would run plays against the Cullen brothers. Jake was tall, muscled in places that Buffy was sure her sister really appreciated and surely enough- if she looked over at Dawn, she could see the faint line of drool on the girl's face. Dawn was alternating between drooling at her boyfriend and sipping her virgin Daiquiri, good times all around.

Lindsey though? Hoo boy, Buffy was seriously in trouble. The lawyer had a seriously un-lawyerly body. He was Edward's height, a bit over five ten, and it was lean muscle. He had black symbols etched on his chest and shoulders, that he had explained as protection runes against surveillance, both magical and electronic. To Buffy though, they just looked like really hot tattoos covering the body of the man she was already coveting.

Spike threw some ice at her, she glared at him as she huffed wiping the moisture off her neck.

The newly human Spike was sitting with the ladies, basking in the fact that he could stay outside without fearing the sun. He was sipping a mélange of juices that Dawn had concocted for him, they found out that he was extremely eager to taste everything that his taste buds had missed over the last hundred and forty years. He would even eat Dawn's peanut butter and anchovy sandwiches which was just a crime as far as everyone was concerned.

"We're getting company slayer, a human. So if you could break away from slobbering over the half naked lawyer and greet him, that would be peachy yeah?" he smirked.

She stuck her tongue out at him as Alice began snickering, vainly trying to hide what she was doing with a hand covering her mouth.

Buffy stood up with as much dignity as she could muster, "if you excuse me, I'll be right back." She stepped away from the line of chaises as people began snickering. The basketball game went on uninterrupted.

Charlie was standing there open mouthed as he took in the scene in front of him. Six young men were playing a heated game of basketball without any shirts, it looked like the young Cullen girls and Dawn were sitting at the sidelines watching them, strangely enough a startlingly blonde man sat with them instead of playing with the other males. Esme and Carlisle were laughing over a barbecue. It looked like any other family scene he had seen, and right in the middle of it was Buffy laughing at something her sister threw at her. Now he knew that he *had* to talk to her, he began to feel uncomfortable with all the people gathered in the Cullen backyard and Buffy looked right at home. They were just too different.

Please review!

A/N: I know that Lindsey had his tattoos magically removed by Wes in an episode (I forgot the name of it), but in my story- he didn't. Cause I love tats, and I think that Lindsey was the hottest thing around with the runes on his body.

So uh, yeah. I wanted a gratuitous half naked scene with all the hot male eye candy. *Nods firmly*.

**27. Tai Chi and surprises**

Disclaimers on Ch.1

Please don't forget to review! XOXO!

"Hey," Buffy softly murmured as they met.

"How've you been?" Charlie reached in for a hug. Buffy stepped into his embrace, it was bittersweet, the familiar smell of his cologne, the heat coming from his body- all of it compounded into a feeling of such loss that she began crying. She knew that they needed to break up, and she could tell by his expression that he was pretty sure of that too. It was just heartbreaking to know that this fabulous, warm hearted, sexy man standing in front of her wasn't meant to be hers.

"Hey, hey now. Come on, don't cry. Please. You know that I can't stand it when a beautiful woman cries," Charlie murmured as he drew her closer. He kissed her temple as Buffy chuckled.

"Really? How many beautiful women have you had crying on you over the years?"

"Hey now, I'm sure that there's hordes of broken hearted women somewhere mooning over me," he commented and Buffy snorted.

"It's not that bad, come on, cheer up please," he tilted her chin up.

Buffy's green eyes, swimming with tears met him. "I don't want to lose you Charlie, you're just so amazing," she hiccuped.

"You won't, I'm pretty sure that my daughter's dating your cousin and is best friends with your little sister. Besides, we can stay friends can't we?" he asked her with a gentle smile.

Buffy nodded frantically and he chuckled as they embraced once more.

"Who's that?" Lindsey asked Emmett as he took in Buffy hugging the dark haired guy near the house.

Emmett looked at the blonde lawyer, his jaw was clenched tightly as he took in the older Summers girl who was enveloped within Charlie's embrace. Bright blue eyes were narrowed as he tried to make out what the exact relationship between the two hugging people was. Emmett inwardly snickered, Lindsey was jealous. Oh that was just too fantastic.

On the other side of the basketball court, Edward paused in his game as he watched Lindsey smolder over Charlie and Buffy. Emmett discreetly turned to face his brother and sent him a wink while Lindsey wasn't watching.

The whole Cullen clan was privately hoping that Lindsey and Buffy get together sooner than later, but the both of them were proving extremely stubborn. The lawyer had his insecurities when it came to dating ex-girlfriends of the former vampire Angel, and Buffy was still a bit too freaked out about how to approach the man she knew she was destined to be with.

"That's Charlie," Emmett told a seething Lindsey.

"Why's he groping her?" the lawyer snarled.

Both Edward and Emmett leaned around to stare at the hugging duo, Buffy was softly crying while Charlie murmured something in her ear. As far as the two could see, there was no groping going on- but then again, none of them had feeling for the small woman currently embracing another man.

"Is he?" Emmett blinked innocently as Lindsey's furious gaze swung over to him.

"Buffy? Why is there a guy covered in tattoos looking like he's about to murder me?" Charlie subtly looked up to see one of the older Cullen boys trying to calm down the pissed off man.

"Huh?" Buffy lifted her face from where she was snuggled into Charlie's embrace.

They both looked at the guy who suddenly turned away and shouted "let's play!" The basketball game resumed with a fierceness previously unseen.

Buffy blinked, "that's Lindsey. He's our new lawyer," she explained.

Charlie lifted an eyebrow, "are all your lawyers covered in tattoos?"

"It's a religious thing, most of us are pagan- different traditions you know," Buffy shrugged.

He slowly nodded as he swallowed that piece of information, while he was aware that the Cullens were different, he certainly didn't think that they were *this* different.

"And how about you?" he asked.

"We're not that religious, too many bad experiences," Buffy replied still keeping one eye on the men, particularly the one who'd given Charlie the evil eye not five minutes previously.

She snapped back her attention to him, "are you okay with this?"

Charlie smiled sadly, "I think we both know that it's for the best."

"Yeah, yeah- you suck with your older man wisdom," Buffy goodnaturedly grumbled.

"Do you want to come to the back with us? There's barbecue," she asked him.

Charlie shook his head, "not today. Would you give Bella a ride home?"

"Sure," Buffy smiled sadly. Maybe it was too early still but she *really* wanted to keep him as a friend. He was one of the kindest people she had met in a very long time.

"And uh, maybe you can get some milk to calm him down or something for your lawyer. He looks pretty angry," Charlie pointed out at the man running on the basketball court, every second glance of who seemed to be directed at him.

Buffy laughed as she pecked Charlie's cheek, "he's a special case, don't worry about him."

He gave a general wave in everyone's direction as he headed back to his car. It was really too bad, but he did what needed to be done.

Buffy sniffed and wiped her eyes as she moved to rejoin her family. She took in a sullen looking Lindsey, he was eyeing her with anger as he whirled around, ran up the court and jumped to dunk the ball into the basket.

What the hell was his damage?

For a guy that spent the last couple of weeks avoiding her like the plague, he was certainly doing a good imitation of someone riddled with jealousy.

His eyes opened to the darkness of his room. The Washington cold air whispered across the covers, he turned to face the open window. Dawn was stealing across the treetops, the dim grey light almost heavy with the habitual precipitation that seemed to haunt this godforsaken town.

He threw back his covers and padded out into the hallway, the vampires weren't about.

Probably cocooned in their individual rooms, enjoying the companionship that their decades old relationships with each other provided. Lindsey envied them for a moment, there was peace in knowing that you were together with someone who was fully yours. He had never had that, his lovers had always come second to his job. And the one woman who could have stood apart was Angel's, she had belonged to him from the start and Lindsey was just a temporary stopping station.

He opened the washroom door, the light illuminated his stubble that probably had to go. But the Cullens were some of the most laid back people he had ever come across, they never got on his case about whether he wore a suit and tie to meetings, they treated him like a part of the family and for that he was secretly grateful.

He listened to the silence of the house, nobody was probably up yet. He decided against putting on a shirt, there was a part of him that still missed the freedom of growing up in Texas, of roaming free on the farm.

The kitchen was empty, he poured himself a cup of black coffee. Knowing everybody's habits, the family made it a habit to always have a pot brewing, some of the humans living there were nocturnal like Spike who was still getting used to living on a regular biorhythm. But almost everybody who had a heartbeat was a caffeine addict and Esme was too happy to accommodate the people she had come to look on as family.

He gripped his cup tight as he stared out the windows, the temperature was cool but surprisingly not as bad as he thought it would be.

Lindsey cracked his neck as he realized that he wanted to feel the cold on his skin, he wanted the invigorating bite of the wind, he wanted the extremeness.

Still wearing only a pair of black sweats he slipped on a pair of sneakers and stepped outside, sipping from his coffee cup he decided to walk around the house.

It was surrounded by the forest, the smell of freshness and frost was almost too much to take in after living so long in LA.

Lindsey breathed in deeply as the cold air slammed into his body, he grinned- this was exactly what he needed.

He began to make his way around the house, a smile on his features.

The smile fell as he reached the back.

Near the forest edge, Buffy was practicing Tai Chi with her eyes closed. Her long blonde hair was loose around her shoulders as she moved through the katas, a look of peaceful serenity radiating from her.

She was only wearing a tank top and white yoga pants that outlined every curve on her lithe body.

Lindsey swallowed, apparently he wasn't the only one that liked to feel the cold as an alternative to a wake up shower.

Buffy's hands moved in front of her, elbows straight in a perpendicular line to her body. She twisted as she flowed into a different pose.

Lindsey noticed that she still had her eyes closed so for the moment he just focused on admiring her.

He didn't know what the hell was going on with his hormones whenever he got around the small blonde, but he was determined not to act on it. He had enough of heartbreak to last him for a good long while.

There was a small snide voice in the back of his mind reminding him of how *he* had used Eve for his own purposes. But then another voice that sounded suspiciously like Spike answered that Eve was a construct made by some of the most evil entities known to man, she would be fine in the end.

Buffy put one hand on the ground, using just the one palm for balance she lifted her whole body into the air in a straight line. Lindsey gaped, he knew that slayers were supernaturally strong but to see an example of their elegance, of their beauty, at six in the morning was a little hard to take in.

He licked his lips as he felt his body's instinctual response to seeing her body's muscles stretch and contort themselves with her manipulations.

Shaking his head at the foolishness one could get up to this early, he headed back inside.

Buffy opened her eyes to see Lindsey's retreating back disappear behind the bend of the house. Strange, he had spent almost five minutes watching her do her exercises in silence and didn't even acknowledge her before leaving. She was grateful that Angel wasn't in her life anymore, but damnit- couldn't she get a drama free guy just once?

Dawn laughed as her boyfriend whispered a joke in her ear. Jake had made it a point to try and see her every day after school, it was always such a pleasure to see him sitting on his huge bike in the parking lot as she exited the doors.

She saw Edward heading towards them, he looked almost bashful with a small smile playing on his lips.

Jake raised his head to nod at his former nemesis, "hey man."

"Hi guys," Edward smiled at the both of them.

Dawn grinned, it had taken her and Buffy almost four months to pull the stick out from his ass but Edward was finally starting to act like a normal human being.

Strange, she would have thought that his brooding a vampire trait that Angel shared, but she knew that others weren't like that. Spike was one of the most joyful vampires when he was undead, Emmett was like a huge cuddly teddy bear with a pervy sense of humor and Jazz was surprisingly sarcastic now that he had his bloodlust under control.

"Whatsup Eddy?" Dawn motioned for him to sit on the bench near them.

"I need to talk to you guys, I wanted to know how to better do this," he murmured as he took out a small black box. Both Dawn and Jake gaped at him as he grinned shyly.

"Uh, Ed, I'm sure that me and Jake are cool and everything- but we're not quite close enough to be entering any weird vampire marriages," Dawn said in her first instinct to turn everything into a joke.

Jake choked from where he was sitting behind her, she was cuddled into his big frame and she could feel the coughs wracking his large body.

"Hey you okay?" she tried to clap him on the back, no need to have a boyfriend die just cause she couldn't keep her mouth shut.

"Jesus Dawnie, try not to say horrifying things like that next time," Jake wheezed out.

Edward scowled at their horsing around, "this is serious."

Dawn turned back to face him and nodded sagely, "vampire marriages usually are."

She held her hand out for the ring, he gently gave it to her. Dawn whistled as she took in the large princess cut diamond, "hoo boy. This is one shiny rock."

Jake playfully bit her ear as he took in the engagement ring, he raised an eyebrow at Edward, "are you sure about this?"

The vampire nodded, "yeah. When we were in LA, and Willow channeled Gaia- she showed each of us a brief vision of our lives to come in the alley. I think that I'm meant to marry Bella, we were always destined to be together."

They had a family meeting the first night they came back, including the recap of everything that happened. They had just kept one small detail out, the fact of Carlisle's rebirth and what it meant for his children, both human and vampire. Buffy had promised to have a long conversation with both Dawn and Jake this weekend, she was overwhelmed with work- delinquents in Forks seemed to like the winter season as a time for acting up.

Dawn snapped the box shut and handed it back to him, "probably. You know what Alice said about Carlisle's blood right?"

Edward looked incredulous at this.

Dawn smacked her forehead, "duh! I have blonde moments sometimes, but yeah- if Gaia said it, and you saw it, then it's probably true."

Jake gently kissed her neck as he contemplated his fate. He knew how lucky he was to imprint on somebody who was destined to be his, and who he was destined to belong to. It was kind of funny that the Quilete tribe who had so long tried to demonize the Cullens actually shared one of their most prominent characteristics with them.

"So what do you think?" Edward asked stuffing both his hands into his jacket.

Jake looked him up and down and slowly gave his nod of assent. It was meant to be that Bella find the Cullen son and fall head over heels for him. Just like it was written in the stars that Jacob Black would meet Dawn Summers.

Dawn grinned as she jumped up from out of Jake's embrace and lunged to hug her cousin, "I think that you probably shouldn't have a wedding in June, that's Faith's month. Other than that, I've always liked August- it'll be really pretty in Washington with the leaves and stuff."

Edward laughed as he squeezed her shoulder, "don't you think you're getting ahead of yourself? I still have to ask Bella and talk to her dad."

Dawn scratched her chin thoughtfully, "well… You may have some problems with Charlie, but I know Bells. She'll want to marry your pasty ass for sure."

Jacob snorted and began laughing at that.

*Push the button, the review button. Come on... You know you want to... lol*

I'm going to try and get the proposal out by tonight.

**28. Time**

*Coughs, I was supposed to have the proposal, but this is what happened.*

Umm, sex scene ahoy. Careful kiddies

"You should probably go up and talk to her, probably make the atmosphere easier for everyone in the house" Spike commented as he sat beside Lindsey at the large table where the lawyer was working on some documents for Alice and Jasper's next year in college. He had take some 'creative' initiative to set up complete records for their scholastic careers. Both of them wanted to do the university thing, and institutions of higher education were generally more nitpicky with the documents they accepted from their applicants.

"What are you talking about?" Lindsey raised his gaze to meet Spike's uncharacteristically serious one. The former vampire had become even more easy going after he regained his life, he and Lindsey would never be busom buddies but they were a lot more friendly now that Angel was out of the picture.

"Buffy. Look mate, we all know that there's something going on with you and her. Fuck, the whole house can feel the sexual tension between you two. Jasper's been draggin Alice off to their little lair practically every twenty minutes if he's in the same room as you two. Poor empath," Spike snorted.

Lindsey sighed as he rubbed his temples. It was true, the tension between the two of them had become almost unbearable. He stood up, maybe Spike was right, maybe it was time to finally resolve things.

He slowly made his way up the stairs to Buffy's 'office'. The blonde was probably there working on the files from work. She had taken over a smaller room in the Cullen home as her getaway from home, when she had to go somewhere else and gather her thoughts.

He knocked on the door.

"Come in," she called out from the inside.

Lindsey opened the door.

Buffy was seated behind her desk, tanned legs on the table as she read a report, wearing only a pair of cut off sweats short enough to be classified as underwear and a white wifebeater. Her hair was partially wet, gathered into a low bun at the nape of her neck.

Lindsey swallowed, "can I sit down?"

"Oh? Yeah sure," she moved her feet off the desk and he almost regretted saying anything.

"Whatsup?" her green eyes met his. Just like before there was an insistent tug when he looked at her, a feeling of pulling against the undertow, of futile resistance when it would be so much easier, and just so much more pleasurable if he gave in.

"Uh, Spike said I should come and talk to you. Strangely enough I agreed," he stood from the chair, just sitting in such close proximity to her was doing havoc to his senses.

He took a couple of steps towards her book case, it was lined with texts on psychology, some novels thrown in here and there.

"Why?" Buffy sounded confused but as he risked a glance at her, there was a sort of weary resignation written on her face. She stood up from her chair and crossed her arms as Lindsey began pacing her cabinet.

"I think that both you and I are aware that there are feelings between us," he began. He looked at her again, she had a blank look on her face that he couldn't begin to place.

He bit his lip with a hollow chuckle, "listen, I'm sure you're great and everything- but these feelings, they can't come to anything."

It felt like all the air whooshed out of the room, a feeling of heavy sadness and grief hung in the atmosphere as Buffy slowly made her way to stand next to him. She lifted her head up to meet his gaze straight on and asked in a small, vulnerable voice "but why?"

And gods forsake him, at that moment- Lindsey couldn't tell her why. He didn't have any reasons why he needed to stay away from her come to the forefront of his mind. All he could do was stare at her, she was so fucking beautiful. He had seen gorgeous women before, hell- he used to work in LA, the land of the beautiful people. She though? She was unconventional, long lashes framed a pair of exquisitely emotive green eyes, she had a bump on her nose that an LA girl would probably have already taken care of. Her parted lips glistened as she let out a breath, he was silent to her inquiry. He obviously didn't want anything to do with her.

She turned to walk away as Lindsey grabbed her to him. Buffy gasped at the sudden force of the move, his long fingers splayed against the small of her back doing havoc to her senses. It felt like butterflies were doing the meringue in her stomach, sending shivers of pleasure and anticipation down her spine. With his other hand, he slowly traced the lines of her face. He gently reached out into her hair and slowly took unraveled the bun she had made for neatness. The heavy length of her golden locks spilled into his palm. Lindsey slowly brought his face closer to hers, it was excruciating waiting for his move, terrifying in its intensity as his bright blue eyes took in her entirety.

Buffy closed her eyes as he rained whispers of a kiss on each eyelid. Each time his lips connected with her skin it felt like he was leaving a trail of fire to add to the liquid pool of warmth in her spine. He trailed kisses down her neckline, stopping briefly to gently nip at her earlobe. Buffy inhaled sharply, her ears were always her most sensitive feature and he was taking his sweet time bestowing this sensual torture on her senses.

"You smell like cinnamon," he murmured against her neck.

"Oh God," Buffy breathed out. She felt like all her skin points were on fire, no matter where he touched her it felt like it all compounded into a hot ball of desire that was slowly but surely beginning to cloud her mind.

Deciding to take matters into her own hands, she took his face and lowered his lips on hers. There were no thoughts, only pure pleasure for the first few moments as they kissed, hot tongues battling for dominance. As she finally tasted the slightly bitter, slightly chocolaty taste of him she gave a mental thank you to the universe for finally rewarding her with this.

If she felt like she was home when she kissed Charlie, she felt like she was on fire and let fly into the air with Lindsey. Weightless and weighed down with the passion all at the same time.

She made a small whimpering noise in her throat as he began trailing hot, wet kisses down her neckline into her chest. She arched into him further, wanting to be as close as possible, wanting to be within him, wanting him in her.

Lindsey growled as he lifted her, Buffy wrapped both her legs around him as he swung them around from the bookcase to her desk. Without looking at what he was doing, he slammed the door of her office shut, Buffy grinned against his lips as she took in the fact that he had just swept aside three hours of her careful work in an effort to get her desk clear. He placed her half sitting form on the desk, her legs still wrapped tightly around him. Neither one of them thought that it would remotely be possible for them to separate at that minute.

She separated from him for a moment, taking her tank top off she took in his slightly glazed eyes, gaze feral and hungry with an almost animalistic passion. He watched her take off her top and unbutton her bra with hooded eyelids, breathing shallow as he gripped her into his embrace once more. His arms enveloped her and Lindsey inhaled her scent. Cinnamon and something herbal, she pulled at him, brought out everything primal in his nature.

She had golden skin, no tan lines that he could see. He took in her breasts, beautiful, small, perky; her nipples stood erect just begging for his attention. Lindsey grinned wolfishly as he began sucking and licking on one, he grazed his teeth lightly on the tip eliciting a sharp gasp from her writhing form. Lindsey smirked in a purely alpha male to the responsiveness of a mate that he had wanted for so long.

Buffy's head was a pleasant daze of fog, all she could concentrate was the feeling of his mouth on her nipples, his tongue circling, sucking, teeth lightly nipping at her, shooting sparks deep into her core. Her legs tightened around his waist as her arousal grew.

Lindsey grinned and moved down her belly button, raining kisses in a pleasure trail that made her whimper under his not so gentle ministrations.

He took off her shorts with one hand, she was wearing a pair of small red thongs. He slowly grinned in anticipation at the lace covering her arousal.

"Oh please," she murmured above him.

Lindsey began kissing the insides of her parted thighs, deliberately teasing her. He chuckle as he heard her protesting whine, her body arched to bring him closer to her core.

With a devastatingly slow finger, he slowly took off her panties. He tossed them somewhere to the side. Lindsey took one finger and measured her wetness, the slickness of her arousal almost overclouded his senses. He grinned wolfishly once again as he slowly lowered his tongue into her.

Buffy was officially a pool of nerves, she was having sex on her desk. How much more mundane could she get? But she didn't give a shit, the things that man could do with his tongue. It felt like nothing she had ever experienced before, he probed at her most innermost recesses, flicking over her ever more aroused pleasure hot spot.

"Oh god, please, I just need you in me," she murmured desperately as she gasped. His tongue had just done a complicated flicking maneuver within her, it felt like her walls were beginning to constrict and there was no fucking way that she'd come without him in her. She honestly didn't think she could take it anymore, she would either pass out from the overwhelming feeling of intense pleasure that his ministrations to her body provided or she'd have to drag him up to her with some of her slayer strength.

"Are you safe?" he whispered against her ear, hot breath tickling pressure points and nerves already strung taught beyond belief.

"Yeah, I'm on the pill," she answered him as she captured his lips in a searing kiss. She could taste herself on him, combined with his own innate spiciness and desire making the both of them heady.

She wrapped her legs around him tighter as she felt the movement of him taking off his pants, she honestly didn't know how he was still closed. She was naked and writhing on her desk and the man had enough nerve to have his clothes on?

The fingers of his hand reached into her hair, he pulled her head back exposing her throat. Lindsey grazed a line on the sensitive spot right under her ear.

Buffy gasped at how he knew that she had always liked a bit of pain with her sex.

And then all thoughts flew from both their minds as he entered her, moving slowly, languidly they set a rhythm that would eventually drive them both over the brink of pleasure. It felt like he was filling every last part of her as he twisted slightly with each movement, she groaned as the shivers down her spine exploded into a million fireworks of desire.

He kept kissing her, licking every last sensitive nerve that he found on his initial exploration of her body. The dull throbbing at the bottom of her stomach, the clenching of her internal walls everything slowed down as her orgasm built. Her breathing shallow, skin covered in a golden sheen of sweat as they stared into each others eyes with every movement both gasping in pleasure.

This was it for her, Buffy realized. Even if he decided to leave after this moment, there would be nobody better, nobody more perfect.

She wrapped her legs behind his back, slightly elevating her lower body as he hit just the right spot. She closed her eyes as ecstasy overtook her, it felt like fire dancing behind closed eyelids.

**29. Weird**

Disclaimer on Ch.1

Buffy looked sheepish the next morning in her own house. She had slipped out of the Cullen home right after the whole 'having hot, dirty sex on somebody else's desk' fiasco and gone straight for her place to gather her thoughts away from the mind reading vamps, empaths that seemed to feel her horniness and seers that made dirty jokes whenever she was on the horizon.

~~Last night

The shudders going through her body were of the leg weakening, earth shattering, mind-melting variety.

She and Lindsey stared at each other for the first full minute after the sex.

What could one say after experiencing something like that?

Thank you for the fabulous orgasm?

Give me a call after work, we'll do a repeat?

He sighed and then smiled, his rarely seen gently boyish grin at her "thank you."

Apparently he had decided to go with option A.

Lindsey then took her face in his hands and slowly brought their lips together. It was a butterfly kiss; slow, surface deep, full of hidden promises and unfulfilled futures.

He then proceeded to walk out of her office.

What the freaking hell?

Who says thank you to sex and then leaves?

What in the infinite wisdom of Aphrodite was she doing jumping in the sack with Lindsey Mcdonald, former evil lawyer extraordinaire and arch-nemesis of at least half her boyfriends.

Although, if one was to get technical about the last point, there hadn't really been a sack, just a *really* sturdy desk in her uncle's home. And oh God!, she slept with somebody in her uncle's home with all her cousins probably listening in with supernatural senses. It was like a bad cosmic joke. Haha Buffy, you screwed up!

Well she didn't have to take it lying down! All dirty jokes from Alice aside.

Buffy nodded her head in decision as she sipped from her coffee cup. She was a strong, independent woman with her future firmly planned out in front of her. And if he wanted to make things weird, then she just wasn't going to let him!

Dawn eyed her sister who had been silent for the last ten minutes.

She had a look on her face that hadn't been there for the last three years. It was a look of satisfaction, vague determination and a bossiness that Buffy in her prime slaying years perfected down to a tee.

She gasped as the reasoning for her sister's weird behavior revealed itself, it was like a light bulb went off in her mind.

"You slept with our evil lawyer!"

Buffy started, almost spilling out of her chair in surprise.

"I did not!" she protested sputtering. She then proceeded to straighten out her skirt so it wouldn't get wrinkled and muttered mulishly, "and he isn't evil."

Dawn's blue eyes were twinkling something awful with mirth and laughter.

"Uh huh. So why do you have the 'oh oh' look on your face?"

Buffy narrowed her gaze and began peeling her breakfast banana.

"Excuse me?"

"You know," Dawn began explaining, "the look where you know that you've done an oh oh but aren't sure how to go about fixing it. You usually get it after sex or after accidentally destroying a weird, world ending amulet."

Her older sister chewed her banana thoughtfully, "when'd you get so wise in the ways of the world my young padawan?"

Dawn stood up, winking at her sister as she passed her by on the way to the kitchen to wash the dishes. "I have my ways. But call me young padawan again and I swear on chocolate, coffee and all that is good and holy in our world- I *will* start calling you Yoda."

Buffy pinched her sister from behind, she had come up to add her dishes to Dawn's pile in the sink "I'm not short," she huffed. "I'm just compact, built to fit into small spaces."

Dawn snorted, washing dishes she commented "yeah, like a Leggo. Or a Yorkie."

Her sister stuck her tongue out at her, once again proving that maturity did not come with age.

Charlie smiled at Jane as he ate his usual lunch at the diner.

The new waitress tittered at him as he gave her one of those slow, easy smirks that now seemed to come so naturally to him.

While his and Buffy's relationship seemed to fizzle out on its own, the effects from knowing the small blonde were still widely felt within him. He was more confident, more secure, he felt looser and more relaxed

He guessed that it wasn't so much dating her, being her friend was enough to bring him out of his shell. And he was happy, content for the first time in a very long while.

Charlie bit into his hamburger, maybe it made him selfish- but he was glad that he had met the Summers sisters, it was time that he moved on from Renee and Buffy would always be a wonderful friend to him.

"I'll see you later Jane," he waved to the waitress and put down a couple of bills on the table, enough to cover the food and tip.

It was a pretty good day outside, chill with just a hint of frost in the air so he decided to take a walk down to the station. It wouldn't kill him to use his legs once in a while.

He had a smile on his face as he exited the doors, life was good, serene.

Walking a block down Main street he came across an interesting sight, a young woman with long red hair wearing a green jacket squinting at a piece of paper with all she was worth.

Charlie decided to stop and help her out, she looked unfamiliar, probably a tourist or a passerby and it wouldn't do to have the sheriff just leave somebody in need if he could help her.

"Hello miss, I'm Sheriff Swan, can I help you with anything?" he approached the woman with a friendly smile.

"Oh goddess, small towns are really more accommodating- I'm kind of lost," she smiled, a wide, easy grin filled with such kindness that something inside Charlie pulled at him.

"I guess that after living in a large city, we *can* be kind of provincial," Charlie murmured.

The woman laughed, "oh no. I've been living in the Himalayas for the last year, this is about all the civilization I can take right now."

Charlie quirked an eyebrow, "backpacking?"

She shook her head as a look of sadness passed over her features, "retreat, mostly to get myself together after a big loss."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Charlie reached for her hand holding the paper.

She smiled and instead of just handing him the paper, she took his hand with hers.

It was subconscious, she probably didn't even realize what she was doing, but Charlie found that he couldn't really begrudge her anything when she was looking at him with those huge, green eyes of hers and a smile that seemed to melt his heart.

"Oh goddess, what am I doing?" she realized what she did and pulled her hand back self consciously.

She smiled, a wry grin that lifted one corner of her mouth, "you're just so trustworthy, you feel like so comforting for some reason, good."

Charlie snorted, "yeah, that's me- trustworthy and comforting. Like an old blanket."

She gently shoved at him, "you're no blanket that I've ever seen, so shush you."

The man in front of her lifted a very sexy eyebrow.

Maybe this was just his year, but this was the second woman that he had been interested in the last decade and she seemed to be flirting with him too! Charlie reached out a hand, "I'm Charlie."

The redhead smiled and tucked a strand of flame colored length back behind her ear, "Willow," she took his hand.

Charlie grinned, "now Willow, let's find what you were looking for and what do you say to me buying you a cup of coffee?"

She looked at him, seeming to gaze deep into his motives, into his thoughts. A silence stretched and then the widest grin he'd seen in a very long time stretched across her features, "yeah. I'd like that."

**30. Chocolate**

I don't know whether Forks has a Starbucks, but it seems probable. Starbucks is everywhere. Like mold. Though I *do* love my caffeine dearly, I still don't see the reasoning behind paying seven bucks for a coffee for theirs.

They had finally found the store, a small Native American shop tucked away in a corner of Main Street full of useful plants and books. Charlie had volunteered to come in with her and surprisingly Willow had agreed, she was really enjoying his company and found that she didn't mind if he stayed with her for a while longer.

"What are you looking for?" Charlie looked curious as he fingered a tied bunch of dried sage.

Willow's head bobbed up from where she was looking at some books on local myths "motherwort."

Charlie quirked an eyebrow, "I thought that was a plant."

"It is," she nodded bending down to look at yet another interesting text that had caught her attention.

"Then should you be looking at the plant section of the store?"

Willow chuckled a little self consciously as she emerged from the book stacks "yeah, but I always get so distracted when I'm around books."

Charlie smiled at the blushing redhead, "I think that books are as good as anything to get distracted over."

Willow blushed even darker and ducked her head as she began perusing the various flora spread out through the shop, "yeah, I've got several friends that get super excited about the 'shiny and sharp' shops so I guess my nerdiness is normal."

Her companion stilled where he was looking at the dream catchers hanging in the window, "shiny and sharp?"

Willow's eyes were wide as she realized her slip of the tongue, "my friends are into role playing games, so you know- medieval weaponry is of the must when you're playing Dungeons and Dragons."

Charlie snorted, "strange friends you have Willow."

Willow gave a weak laugh, "oh haha, you have no idea," she smiled, "but I still love them."

Charlie's pager beeped at that second just as Willow's cell phone began ringing.

Alice had insisted that the wicca was reachable so they had taken her shopping for cell phones in LA before they came back, it was a sleek little Motorola that Willow now flipped open.

It was the seer herself. "I just called Charlie in for an emergency at the station, you need to make sure that he doesn't follow you. There's an emergency, you're going to be needed for a teleporting spell- Dawn will be outside your store in about ten minutes, you're going to need to take her to this clearing."

Willow closed her eyes as the picture of her destination flowed into her mind.

She and Alice had become fairly close, spending hours exploring whether the seer might be able to send images and thoughts to Willow through the witch's magical telepathy.

They found that Willow could get pictures but no thoughts, it was still a big improvement over the big fat nothing they had before.

Alice's voice sounded urgent but she still chuckled, "if I was you, I'd make sure to give my number to him before he leaves. He's a good guy."

Willow smiled as she hung up.

Charlie looked apologetic as he finished reading the message, "listen I have to go, it's too bad that we're not going to be able to get that coffee now."

Willow pulled out a pen and ripped off a piece of paper from her notepad that she had been carting around with the store's address.

"Here's my number, give me a call," she smiled.

"Alright, I will." Charlie grinned at her warmly and shook her hand before leaving the shop in a hurry.

He smiled as he dialed Ned's number, hopefully his deputy would be able to take care of whatever emergency this was.

He was really enjoying his time with the redhead, he wanted to surprise her by coming back and continuing their getting to know each other session.

Buffy hummed as she made the salad. Dawn and Jake would be coming over for dinner, and she wanted to make her sister's boyfriend as comfortable as possible with her presence.

Because like it or not, Jacob Black would most definitely be in Dawn's life and therefore hers too for the rest of their collective existence.

Buffy wasn't the cocky, brash slayer of Sunnydale days anymore. She wanted peace, happiness, safety for her family and there was nothing that she wouldn't do to make sure that Dawnie was content.

She popped the casserole into the oven and put the pre-cut veggies for the salad into the fridge.

Thankful that her work schedule was fairly light these days and that she could concentrate on her studies, she headed to get her Clinical Psychology textbook from her brown tote bag.

The Psychology Department at the University of Washington was wonderful- the professors supportive, the lectures informative and the seminars engaging.

She felt lucky that she was fortunate enough to have Carlisle as a relative. He told her what he did to get her and Dawn to Forks. Seems that he wrote a couple of glowing recommendations for the sisters and directed the scholarship committee's attention to all the work Buffy had done with youth both in Sunnydale and San Diego.

It wasn't like he donated money to the university as an incentive for them to invite the Summers sisters to study, he had just made sure that Buffy and Dawn were at the forefront of the contenders for their collective scholarships. And she found that she couldn't fault her uncle his decision, after all- this was making life a lot easier for both her and Dawnie.

She carefully laid out the different highlighters on the table.

Even while in high school- she had always been a visual learner, images and colors made it easier for her to retain any given information.

Demonic research had always gone easier for her if there were pictures, cues for her mind's attention instead of long paragraphs of text that tended to blur after a while.

Buffy made a fresh pot of coffee, studying with caffeine was a long ingrained habit.

She wondered what Joyce would think of her girls now, she had always wanted Buffy to go to college, and now her oldest was getting a Master's degree and her youngest was set to go into the same area of study as their mother.

A pang echoed within her heart, she *really* hoped that their mom was proud of all the hard work her girls were putting into their lives.

Dawn sat in the one Starbucks that Forks had. She *had* to smile, capitalism was truly a globalizing entity- rampant within the four corners of the earth. Even within their little town, the green and white corporate entity had still managed to stake it's claim.

She spread her books out, Jake would be picking her up for their finally scheduled dinner with Buffy, but in the meanwhile she still had an essay on neo-classical art to write for her class.

Her boyfriend walked through the door twenty minutes later, an older, scowling guy behind him. Jake didn't look too happy with his escort either.

Dawn closed her book warily, capping her highlighter she got up to peck Jake's cheek.

"Hey grumpy, what's going on?" she asked him with a small smile.

Jake winced and ran a hand through his short, spiky hair "this is Sam, he wanted to meet you."

"Oh," Dawn murmured, "hi." She reached out her hand in greeting. Sam Uley, Jake's alpha. He was studying her intently, eyes filled with an emotion that Dawn wasn't sure she was comfortable with.

She knew that Jake had been having trouble with the pack, while most of them were glad that he had imprinted on somebody other than Bella- they were still plenty angry that he had been associating with the Cullens.

"Hello," Sam shook her hand, "it's good to finally meet Jake's mate, it was almost beginning to feel like he was hiding you from us."

Jake looked sheepish, "I just wanted her to myself for a while yet."

Dawn gave the older man in front of her one of her most disarming smiles, "sorry Mister Uley, it was my fault. Family stuff you know, Jake was just awesome enough to support me and my sister through it."

Sam looked pained, "yeah, about that. We need to talk about the fact that for some reason Jake thinks that you're related to the Cullens."

Dawn straightened her shoulders as she looked him straight in the eye, "we are."

"I'm not going to have you lying to me!" Sam hissed. "How the hell can you be related to those bloodsuckers?"

Dawn was shocked, the big man looked threatening, angry as he advanced on her. She took two steps back and just as fast there was Jacob's huge frame in front of her, he was growling as he challenged his alpha.

"Don't you dare," the rumbles coming from her boyfriend's chest were angry, body shaking and yet Dawn felt more secure knowing that he was between her and Sam.

Sam stopped right in front of Jake, the two men were looking each other in the eye, snarls emanating from both chests.

The alpha of the pack pulled his lip back in a threat, "are you challenging me pup?"

Jake swallowed as he replied, "I am. I'm the rightful alpha, you're only holding my position."

Dawn's breathing was shallow, fear was choking her, holding her in place. This couldn't be happening! Jake was too young to be challenging Sam, but she knew that he was right. It *was* his rightful place to be alpha.

"Outside," Sam snarled.

Jake nodded tersely as the man in front of him turned to leave the shop.

"Jake no, you can't," Dawn grabbed his arm.

He pressed a kiss on her forehead, "it'll be okay, just stay here please."

Dawn felt terrified as he walked out after Sam, she quickly dumped everything from the table into her bag.

She ran out of the shop, there was no sign of either Jake or Sam.

Her cell phone rang, it was Alice. "Go to the boundary of the forest near the bookstore on Main, I've already called Willow, she'll teleport you right to the clearing."

Dawn ran as fast as she could, her breath coming out in pants as urgency fueled her, giving her extra speed, fear biting at her heels.

She skidded as she turned the corner to the bookstore, Willow was already standing there, mystical wind blowing her hair back as sparkles danced along her fingers.

"Come on!" Dawn grabbed Willow's hand for the skin to skin contact needed for teleporting.

Before they disappeared, she swore that she saw Charlie Swan's shocked face as he turned the corner of the bookstore to where they stood. She put it out of her mind as the familiar feeling of electricity dancing on her skin enveloped her. Right before they left though, she felt a hand grab onto her elbow and she whipped her head around to see a determined Charlie latch onto her.

Willow gasped as the appeared on the edge of a clearing, two giant wolves were circling each other, loud snarls emanating in the air, buzzing it with violence. Jake had shifted over at the Cullen house before, just so everybody would know his wolf form if ever anything happened and his form was familiar though the threat radiating from his was new.

She quickly counted fourteen wolves standing in a semi-circle around the combatants, their fur raised and eyes glowing as the watched the proceedings intently. She quickly threw up a shield as Dawn made to lunge forward.

"Don't, they need to fight for the leadership," she murmured to the panicked girl.

"What the fuck Willow? He'll kill him!" Dawn's wide blue eyes were huge on her pale face as she raged against the shield.

"He won't, but there needs to be one alpha. There can't be tension in a pack and Sam *did* threaten you which isn't allowed by their laws."

Dawn looked like she was about to tear out her hair in frustration, "when'd you learn all this?"

Willow was watching the wolves, "I've been talking to Alice. She warned me that this could happen."

"What? Why didn't she tell me and Jake?" Dawn was spitting mad.

"Jake knew," Willow murmured as the two wolves slammed into each other.

And then they were a snarling, biting, yipping, violent tangle of fur and limbs as each tried to gain dominance.

Willow turned to glance at the man that had hijacked a ride with them, "you wanted to know where we were going, so watch."

She felt bad for being so cold to him, but she knew that he shouldn't have come with them. He shouldn't have followed her back, he shouldn't have grabbed a ride on the 'wicca express' as Buffy had dubbed her teleporting. Now, he had no choice but to see what had been going on under his nose for all this time.

Charlie was gaping, shock coloring his features as he looked from the fighting wolves, to the large circle of gently snarling ones and to Dawn who was standing with her fists clutched tight in fear and desperation.

Slowly but surely the black wolf was gaining momentum, both Willow and Dawn held their breaths, the wicca prepared to throw a spell just in case Sam got out of control and went too far.

But then the huge, russet colored wolf took an advantage and quickly flipped him over landing in a snarling crouch on the other animal's body with his teeth clamped over Sam's throat. He gave one shake of his head to signify his victory, the black wolf's throat still in his jaw as the circle raised their collective maws and howled.

It was haunting, watching the bloodied animals separate as the rest of them howled in what had happened. The russet wolf was panting heavily, paw bleeding and fur torn in patches as he slinked his way over to Dawn.

Willow threw the shield away as the girl next to her dropped to her knees, crying in relief she threw her arms around the huge wolf's neck. "Oh thank God," she was sobbing as she rained kisses on the animal's face.

Jake in wolf form gave a gentle whine as he extracted himself from Dawn's arms, he raised an inquisitive eyebrow which looked almost comical in his current form as he took in a shocked Charlie.

Willow shrugged, "don't worry about it, either way- it'll be fine."

Jake gave a barely perceptible nod as he went back to the circle.

The fourteen wolves still stood in their previous positions, a panting Sam-wolf stood on shaky paws as Jacob came back inside the circle. Jake and he stared at each other silently for a full couple of minutes, Willow knew that the Quielete shifters were telepathic when in wolf form so she guessed that the whole pack was communicating silently.

Jake then came forward and nudged Sam's muzzle with his, an obvious gesture of friendship and peace. Willow had watched enough National Geographic to know animal behaviors when she saw them, plus she had spent many a sleepless night after Xander's whole hyena incident secretly studying pack behavior to see if her friend had retained any of his animal attributes.

A moment passed and then Sam nudged Jake back, both Dawn and Willow exhaled.

The huge russet colored wolf then raised his head and gave a long howl to the wind, shivers went down Willow's spine as she took in the primitive power enclosed in such a sound.

There was a complete silence in the pack and then two wolves stepped out to face Jake, one a chocolate brown with inquisitive eyes and a clear intelligence shining through in every move and the other a dark grey one with black spots on his back.

Willow smiled gently as the three giant wolves came forward to her, she gently murmured "hi guys," as the stepped between her and Dawn.

The two new shifters came forward with Jake's permission to familiarize themselves with Dawn's scent, she giggled as she petted their shaggy furs.

Willow looked Dawn in the eye as the girl straightened up from the greetings with Jake's friends.

"Let's get to the Cullens?"

Dawn shrugged, she then addressed Jake "what do you think?"

The wolf was silent for a moment and then gave a nod with his great head.

"You guys need to all touch me if we're going to be doing a group teleport," Willow murmured.

They looked at the clearing as the last of the other wolves disappeared through the trees.

Dawn sighed as she took in the extremely pale Charlie, "well come on then. I think it's time for explanations, plus Esme should have some hot chocolate in the house. It's great for nerves."

She maneuvered the poor guy to Willow and had to manually link their hands together.

Dawn then took the wicca's elbow, touching her above the elbow.

Willow extended her other hand down, Jake and the other three wolves made sure that they were all touching a part of her as they disappeared from the clearing.

**31. Revelations 1**

Buffy checked her watch against the television once more.

It was fine, running right on time.

This meant that Jake and Dawn were late. She huffed as she picked up the cell phone to call her sister.

"Dawn where are you?" Buffy asked worried.

"I'm at the Cullens, Charlie ran into us doing magic- he's here now."

Buffy let out a groan, "I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Hurry," Dawn hung up.

Buffy sighed, putting the phone back in her pocket.

She then went into the kitchen, turning off the oven and placing the casserole onto the countertop. Hopefully it wouldn't cool down too much before they could make it home, she still wanted to talk to Dawn and her boyfriend.

The doorbell rang, "oh shit, what the hell is it now?"

Buffy quickly ran up to it, looking through the keyhole she swung the door open on a very surprised Lindsey.

She raised an eyebrow.

"He cut off my hand," Lindsay said holding up a perfectly good one.

Buffy gave him a look that clearly said that someone wasn't being the brightest bulb in the string.

"I got it back," he explained.

"Who cut off your hand?" Buffy rooted around her bag for the keys to the house.

"Angel," Lindsey watched her intently.

"Huh. Was he evil then?" Buffy didn't even raise her head from her search.

"No."

"Were *you*?" green eyes bore into him with a seriousness previously unseen.

Lindsey fidgeted, "there were complications."

Buffy eyed him dismissively, "uh huh. There always are."

She closed the house and headed to her car.

Lindsey jogged after her, "hey wait! Where're you going?"

"Cullens, we have a newbie to introduce into our wonderful, magical way of life. I know him, don't want him to freak out around all the unknowns." Buffy opened the door to the convertible.

She paused and looked back at him.

"You wanna come?"

Lindsey stopped in his tracks and then nodded.

It had been two weeks since he had moved out of the Cullen home. His new apartment in Forks was pretty nice, equipped with everything that a bachelor could want and yet he felt that there was something missing.

No more Esme smiling first thing in the morning as she handed him a cup of scorching black coffee.

No more Alice and Jasper holing up in their rooms whenever he and Buffy would get within two feet of each other, the small pixie girl shooting him amused looks and Jazz inventing innuendo so dirty yet strange that Lindsey was baffled for days afterwards.

No more Emmett dragging him outside to play football, Lindsey's mystically enhanced speed and strength the equalizing factor between two friends.

Lindsey missed them. A lot. He even missed Spike with his enthusiasm for everything human now that he had his life back.

He missed Buffy the most though, the snarks, the quips, the smiles she would send his way. This was why he had come over, he wanted to ask her out. No more avoiding the blonde, no more laying in bed wondering about the 'what ifs.' It was now or never.

Lindsey Mcdonald had clawed his way up to the higher echelons of Los Angeles society from abject, rural poverty. He *could* definitely do something like ask a woman out on a date, scary Slayer or not.

He sat in the car watching Buffy's blank face as she drove, as usual her reflexes were scary fast and he had to hold on to the 'oh shit' handle for all he was worth.

The tires squealed as she pulled into the Cullen driveway, Buffy quickly got out of the car and briskly walked into the house.

Lindsey shook his head at her brusqueness as he followed her.

"I'm here! What's going on?" Buffy called out into the house as she entered with her key.

"We're in the kitchen honey!" Esme's voice floated back to them.

Buffy stalked towards the sound, heels clicking on the hardwood floors.

"Buffy?" Charlie stood up from where he was sitting on the couch, flanked by a sympathetic looking Alice and a scared Bella.

"What's going on here?"

"Hey Charlie," Buffy crossed to him and gave him a quick hug.

Unknownst to them, both Lindsey and Willow got scowls on their faces when confronted with the familiarity of the two people in front of them.

"You guys know each other?" Willow murmured twisting a lock of hair between two fingers.

Spike and Emmett exchanged gleeful smirks at the new complication in their lives.

"They used to date, broke up recently," Emmett told the redhead in sotto voice which of course everybody heard.

"Oh shut up!" Dawn smacked her cousin upside his head.

"Ow! Dawnie what the hell?" Emmett rubbed his head purely for show and everybody knew it.

"Oh calm down you big baby, I'm sure you're fine," she rolled her eyes.

Seeing this display of familial bickering served two things, it lightened up the atmosphere in the room and it calmed Charlie down.

He raised a tentative hand.  
"Uh, where are the three wolves that came with us? Shouldn't someone be helping the red one? He looked injured."

Everybody took a good, long look at Charlie.

Apparently this was the exactly right thing he could have said in a room full of the supernatural, his obvious concern even in a state of shock endeared him to the rest of the family.

Dawn grinned and came up to Charlie.

"Can I have a hug?" She looked up at him with shining eyes.

"Sure Dawnie," Charlie reached down. He still looked confused as hell but the girl who'd become so close to his daughter was asking for a hug, for some comfort so he gave it to her.

"It sucks that you're not dating my sister anymore," Dawn murmured against his neck.

Lindsey made a choking sound at that.

Spike and Emmett looked like they were wishing for popcorn.

Buffy smiled.

Dawn let go of Charlie and motioned to the glass doors leading to the outside, the forest surrounding the Cullen home was clearly visible and everybody took in the almost idyllic scene near the clearing.

Three huge wolves were playing with each other, happy yips and growls could be faintly heard from the inside.

"They're good, thanks for asking." Dawn grinned at Charlie.

Esme took out a couple of mugs, "do you want anything to drink Mister Swan?"

Spike piped up "go ahead, the missus makes the second best hot chocolate I've ever had."

He smiled sadly at Buffy, they both knew how much the former vampire used to enjoy drinking hot chocolate with Joyce while they talked about everything in the world.

It was just another testament to Spike's unique personality that one of the closest people to him during his evil days was the slayer's mother.

"Call me Charlie, and sure," he nodded to a smiling Esme.

Everybody waited for him to get the beverage and then settled down into their usual spaces in the luxurious living room.

Charlie sat back on the couch and Buffy moved to sit in the chair opposite him, she straddled it backwards and gave him a small smile.

She leaned forward and squeezed his hand gently "what I'm about to tell you is probably going to sound pretty insane, but I'm going to need you to hear me out. Listen till the end before you start wondering what the group rate at the closest loony bin is."

He looked around at the people surrounding him warily, turning back to face Buffy he nodded.

Buffy sighed and sat back to get more comfortable.

"Contrary to popular belief, this world did not begin as a paradise. Demons ruled the earth, they made it their playground. Man came and the demons mixed with him, making the first hybrid- vampire. Vampires spread so easily that man needed some way to defeat them, to control them- man needed to find a way of ensuring the survival of their kind. So they took a young girl, they chained her in a cave and they performed a ritual on her, infusing her with some of the darkest magic imaginable. They gave her superhuman strength, speed to rival some of the fastest demons, senses to detect danger from as far away as possible- they made her the ultimate protector of man. They made the first slayer."

Charlie looked sick as he listened to Buffy talk.

She gently nudged him, "are you with me so far?"

He nodded.

"When the first slayer died, her power passed into another girl. She would become a slayer too. The men that created the first, the shamans that infused her with the magic- they eventually started to call themselves the Watchers Council. Their purpose was to train and guide every slayer that would eventually follow in the line.

In recent years, the Council has expanded to include the supernatural element. People that have a little something extra to them and that want to help in the ongoing fight against evil. What you saw Willow do was magic. She is a good witch."

Charlie jumped up, backing away from all of them with raised hands he tried to find some kind of reasonable explanation for everything that he'd heard.

"You guys are freaking insane!"

Buffy followed him slowly, a sad smile on her face.

"We're really not."

He laughed incredulously, a harsh sound in the otherwise quiet living room.

"You *people* brought this insanity into my town! What the hell is wrong with you?"

Dawn crossed her arms and glared at the admittedly understandable denial "we didn't. We came here because we were retired, we came here to rest. But *your* town is just chock full of this insanity."

Charlie snorted in disbelief "I suppose next thing you'll be telling me is that one of you is this slayer."

He stilled as everybody in the room stiffened. Buffy and Dawn looked at each other, then back at him. The blonde stepped forward with a weary sigh.

She raised a hand "I'm going to need a volunteer."

Edward and Alice smirked and shoved Emmett to the front.

The seer winked at Gunn who was watching the proceedings by her side "this will be *really* funny."

The bald man grinned "I bet."

He swung a companiable arm around her shoulders as they watched Emmett approach his cousin, they looked a bit comical with their height difference but their friendly affection for each other was clearly felt.

Emmett scowled at his grinning siblings and at Spike who was giving him a gleeful thumbs up, bright blue eyes twinkling with amusement at his friend's predicament.

He stepped up to Buffy.

She gave him a playful wink and then suddenly lifted him up in the air.

Even though everyone present was aware of her strength it was still jarring to see the tiny, five foot two blonde twirl the huge vampire like a baton. She had to compensate for her short reach, several times Emmett's head missed the floor by a quarter of an inch, always flying back up at the last second. She twirled him around once more and sat him back down.

If he was pale before, now he just looked like a fresh, mint ice cream. Greenish white.

"I hate you all" he murmured to the laughing Alice and Edward, Gunn was practically rolling on the ground in his mirth.

Emmett slowly ambled his way to his wife who had the grace to look sympathetic, Rose hugged Emmett close to her clucking "aww baby, come on, let's get you upstairs."

She led him off, but as he turned his back to the rest of the crowd, she winked saucily at the still chuckling Spike and gave Buffy a subtle thumbs up. Clearly, Rosalie found the whole thing funny too.

The second round of family banter served as a sort of balm for poor Charlie who was not looking like he'd be falling over any second, but had now achieved a merely shell shocked state.

Buffy turned back to face him. "How're you doing there?"

"Uh huh, I'll be fine. I hope," he motioned at Willow, "what did you do to get us back here before?"

Willow glanced at her blonde friend who gave her a subtle nod.

She smiled sympathetically at Charlie, "magic, teleporting spell."

She snapped her fingers and a crackle of purple lightning ignited between them, snapping them again changed the purple lighting into a white lily which she handed over to Charlie.

He eyed the flower warily, "how'd you know?"

"That it's your favorite flower?" Willow shrugged.

"Magic?" he looked suspiciously at the delicately scented flower.

Willow looked a little offended, "no, you told me." She turned away from him, "I thought it would make you feel better."

Charlie looked torn as he debated between following the upset redhead and having his own private freak out, he glanced at the room's occupants once more, "so is everybody here human, or is the supernatural present in this room too?"

Buffy crossed her arms, "it doesn't work like that. Only me and Willow are willing to tell you at this moment about us, but that's because we haven't been purely honest with you in the past. All you need to know about the rest of the people in this room is that we're all family, who love each other very much and that want to see the world safe."

Charlie swallowed and nodded slowly, "I need time to think about all of this."

He got up and started making his way out. He stopped near Bella, she looked up at him.

"Are you coming?"

"I'm sorry dad, but I'm staying here."

Charlie raised an eyebrow.

Bella slowly stood up to face him, "I'm eighteen dad, I can make these decisions now. These are good people, they do amazing things every day to make everyone safe, I want to stay with them and help."

There was a silence in the room and very, very slowly a paternal smile began to bloom on Charlie's face.

He raised a hand, slowly touching her cheek he murmured "I'm very proud of you honey."

Bella threw herself at her dad, "oh thank you!" They stood in a silent embrace for a moment and then Charlie gently disengaged himself from her.

He looked back at Buffy with a small smile and a nod, his eyes then invariably travelled to Willow who was standing with her arms around herself. His gaze softened as he took in the obvious distress on her features.

"I'll be back soon. I promise."

They shared a heated look, full of promises, exchanges and hopes and Charlie walked out of the Cullen house, slowly closing the door behind him.

Jazz stood next to Willow with a hand on her shoulder, "that went better than I thought it would." He was trying to calm the distressed wicca, sending her vibes of reassurance and warmth.

"Yeah, I for one still can't believe that you used to date," Lindsey just sounded petulant as he gazed at Buffy.

She shook her head with an exasperated sigh, motioning over to the outside she said "come on Linds. There are things that you need to know, if we're going to do this- I want you going in with your eyes fully open."

Lindsey went out first, grabbing a jacket on his way.

Buffy turned to follow him but stopped as Dawn placed a hand on her elbow, "are you sure about this?"

The older Summers nodded, "yeah. I want to do this right for once, no secrets, no hiding. He needs to know."

Dawn nodded and gave her sister a quick, one armed hug. "Tell Jake and the guys that dinner will be ready soon okay? I know they're going to be hungry after running around the forest for all this time."

Buffy put on her own jacket, "sure Dawnie." She then grinned weakly, "I'm about to go tell your wolfy boyfriend that dinner will be done soon, how strange are our lives?" Shaking her head in amusement she stepped out.

**32. Soulmates**

Disclaimers on Previous chapters.

Please don't forget to review!

We're slowly winding down, at least for this story.

Buffy stared at Lindsey as his eyes widened, the realization of how big the secret she had been keeping from him was drawn all over his features.

He took a few steps back, a frown on his face as he addressed her, "so is any of this real?"

Buffy sighed, she knew that there was a pretty big chance that he'd react this way. She ran a hand through her hair, "it is, the only thing the spell does is make it easy for us to find each other."

Lindsey threw a hand in the air, "stop! You're talking about magic, magic that's influencing everyone in your family- and you're okay with this?'

She raised an eyebrow, slowly she shrugged, "Lindsey- I don't see the point about freaking out over something that I can't change."

He faltered, "but *how* are you okay with your life getting dictated by something so far in the past?"

A loud bout of raucous laughter was heard from the house, both of them turned their heads to see what was going on.

Dawn, Rose and Alice were sitting on the couch; Emmett was nowhere to be seen, probably still hiding out in his room from the tilt-a-whirl ride given by Buffy; Edward and Gunn were sitting on the countertop watching the proceedings while the Cullen parents stood in the middle of the room as Willow grew magic flowers around them.

Buffy smiled gently as she took in the happiness of her family, she turned to face Lindsey "do you need time, or is this the last straw of our weirdness for you?"

Lindsey's bright blue eyes burned with feelings that he hadn't had the chance to express yet, with choices still to be made and an overwhelming confusion that threatened his world view.

Buffy looked at him, she didn't know what feelings she was supposed to be developing for this man- but she knew that they *did* have a connection.

When she had talked to Alice, the small seer had talked about finding your soul's mate in a mostly romantic sense, she talked of completion, or marriage, of futures bound together.

But maybe, it was different, maybe Alice wasn't completely right. Maybe finding your soul mate meant finding someone that held a key to a piece of you, a key to understanding yourself and the world around you in a bigger way.

It's been almost a decade since Angel and their drama-filled relationship, but Buffy could still remember feeling like she'd die if he ever left her.

And then he did.

And she survived, she lived, she fought and she fell in love again.

With Spike of all people, the most foul mouthed, highly inappropriate person who did everything he could to prove his love to her.

Buffy looked back at Dawn again smiling, she turned back to the agitatedly pacing Lindsey and asked him, "have you ever been to Europe?"

He almost stumbled in his steps as he blinked at her rapid change of discussion, "um… yeah," he tucked his hands in his jean pockets, shoulders hunched, familiar smirk on his face as he reminisced, "Wolfram and Hart definitely had the best vacation policies out of other law firms that I've encountered."

Buffy smiled kindly as she tilted her head up to the sky.

It felt like snow would be coming, the slightly frosty taste of the air pleasantly bit at her senses.

"I haven't," she closed her eyes as she breathed in.

She eyed him again and winked, " I *want* to."

Buffy slowly zipped up her jacket, she gestured with one hand as she pictured everything that she was still planning to do,

"I want to travel, did you know that?"

Lindsey shook his head mutely.

"Yeah, I do," Buffy grinned, "once Dawn graduates. I know she'll be okay with the family here, but I want to see the world you know?"

She wrinkled her nose, hazel eyes lighting up with mischief, "I'm only twenty five Lindsey, there's so much that I haven't done yet, so much that I plan on doing, on seeing."

"Being soul mates doesn't mean that we have to be romantically together, we both know that we *are* attracted to each other, and we're obviously sexually compatible."

Lindsey leered at her even with the confusion shining in his eyes at her words.

"But I think that I'm done trying to fit square pegs into round holes" Buffy said softly, as she looked up at him through lowered lashes, "if you decide that this is too much, that's pretty much okay.

If you decide that you don't want to be with me, it'll be your choice and not because some spell made you do something dumb or something that you'll regret.

Just know that my family will always think of you as one of ours Linds, you're stuck with us till the end of time," she chuckled, "literally in the vampires' cases."

Snowflakes began to gently descend from the sky; fat, white flakes that landed on both of their jackets.

Buffy took a couple of steps towards Lindsey, she smiled at him as she dusted off some flakes from his jacket.

"But me? As of right now, I'm deciding that I'm going to be happy. For me. I will do whatever it takes so that at the end of the day, I can face my time with no regrets."

Lindsey's eyes were shadows of fleeting emotion, blue met green as she stood up on her tippy toes and placed a soft, lingering kiss on his lips.

She stepped back, "I think that I'll start with Amsterdam, always wanted to see the cafes and the museums."

Lindsey snorted gently as he tucked a golden strand behind her ear, "it's a beautiful city, I'm sure that you'll love it."

Buffy laid her fingers over his hand, she gave him a squeeze as he exhaled and stood up a little straighter.

He looked over at the house, "you better go in, it looks like Esme's decided that dinner waits for no one."

Buffy looked and sure enough, Rose and Alice were setting the table while Dawn and Spike were helping Esme in the kitchen, "yeah, for someone that doesn't need to eat- she's really tetchy about the food going cold."

"Tetchy huh?" Lindsey grinned.

Buffy nodded with a small bounce, "yeah, one of the kids at school gave me a word of the day calendar," she inclined her head with glee as she smirked, "I'd have gotten offended, but it's actually pretty cool."

Lindsey laughed as he drew her closer into a hug, "you are an amazing woman," he kissed her forehead, "you're going to set the world on fire- you know that right?"

Buffy snuggled into his warm embrace, "as long as it's me that's the pyro and not my little sister, I'm okay with that."

He smiled as he let go of her, Buffy began buttoning up his jacket for him.

She murmured, "let me know whatever you decide alright?"

"Yeah, of course I will. And tell Esme and Carlisle that I'm sorry I can't make it for dinner," Lindsey commented as Buffy made sure he would be warm enough walking back to his car.

"And just for the record?" he drew her closer and tipped her back, lips descending on hers with all the passion that he felt for the small blonde woman with a wicked sense of humor and a fate bigger than the world could ever imagine.

Buffy moaned against him as their tongues dueled for dominance, his right hand was splayed firmly against the base of her spine as his left drew her even closer, fingers playing within her blonde tresses. Lindsey sucked her lip gently as he pulled away, Buffy whimpered with a pout at his action.

He smirked, "just for the record? You are the most amazing person that I could ever hope to have in my life."

Buffy cleared her throat as she adjusted her hair, she grinned and slapped the front of his jacket playfully, "damn skippy mister Mcdonald, I am the shiz- as the kids say these days."

Lindsey laughed and swatted her butt, "go inside before you freeze your shiz in the cold."

Buffy stuck her tongue out at him, giving him a wicked smirk and a jaunty wave, she walked back to the house an extra sashay to her hips and a mile wide grin on her face.

She closed the door behind her and took off her jacket, making sure to brush the snowflakes off it.

She headed into the living room where her loud, boisterous family was sitting down to eat dinner. The humans were having roast beef with rosemary and butter potatoes while the vampires were trying out one of the new blends they had bought at the Seattle demon bar. Wherever it was that Lorne was traveling, he apparently kept up with his recipes- every week a new one would arrive in stock.

The Cullen family was now feeling positively indulgent as they mixed their diet of animal hunts with the mixed blood that Lorne was stocking the bars across the country with.

Carlisle was pouring juice into Dawn's glass as Buffy walked up to him, he automatically swung his arm around her as she snuggled into his paternal embrace.

"You good?" he inquired, golden eyes shining with concern and worry.

Buffy looked at the table with a smile.

Dawn and Rosalie were arguing over a designer's new collection, Spike and Emmett sat by them waging a thumb war against each other, the peroxide blonde cackled loudly as he won whooping with joy.

Jazz just rolled his eyes as he ignored his brother and friend, preferring instead to just relax.

Gunn and Edward were looking at the newest crackberry model, the vampire had his arm casually slung around the back of Bella's chair even as he debated the features with the bald hunter.

Bella and Alice were trying to fill everybody's plates as conversations surged around them, Spike and Emmett's occasional bickering filling the air with good natured play fighting.

Esme was cutting the roast beef, a checkered apron protecting her beautiful purple dress from any stains.

Buffy grinned wider, this was it, this was family.

"Yeah, I'm very, very good."

A/N: I wanted to give Buffy the biggest present I could- the ability to stay happy on her own.

Very often, my stories begin looking like the stereotypical fics where everyone is coupled up and couldn't be happier about it. That doesn't happen like that in real life, RL is full of complications, of differing desires and conflicting emotions.

This *does not* mean that Buffy and Lindsey are over, this means that Buffy is fully happy at the moment. Even with the uncertainty, even with the upheaval- our girl is serene, content.

Love shouldn't be about the end all goal of trying to be happy with someone else by your side, love should be about feeling contentment and peace with the world no matter what your personal situation.

**33. Volturi**

Dawn hummed as she got ready for her weekly date with Jake.

He said something about going to Seattle for a dinner and movie, Dawn grinned as she searched for a particular pair of earrings, she was really missing big city life and cherished any opportunity available to travel out of Forks for a while.

She looked through her jewelry box more thoroughly, not finding what she wanted Dawn exited her room and headed down the hall.

She knocked on Buffy's door, "Buff?"

Her sister called out "come in!"

Dawn entered the room, familiar artwork and photographs hung from the walls, mementos of years passed and people gone though their lives.

The big, four poster bed was slightly messy, brightly hued throw pillows everywhere and her sister in the midst of it all with a psychology text in her lap and her laptop near some hand written notes.

Dawn flopped down on the edge of the bed, "hey geekbrain."

She grinned at Buffy's indignant huff.

Who knew back in Sunnydale that the blonde slayer was a closet nerd?

It still shocked Dawn on some days to come down before eight in the morning and find her sister already going through her notes, making passages in some weird books on neuro-chemical science and just being generally annoying and smart.

"What's going on Dawn? Don't you have your weekly rendezvous to get ready for?" Buffy stretched and retied her ponytail higher.

Dawn bounced slightly on the bed, making the papers flutter in a somewhat menacing way to anyone of the academic persuasion.

And sure enough, there it was, the barely concealed panic of her hard organizational work going to waste, "hey hey hey! Watch the notes!" Buffy quickly arranged everything back in order.

Dawn smirked, "did you borrow my red earrings?"

She watched in triumph as Buffy opened her mouth to protest such an outrageous occusation, took one look at her notes still strewn around the bed and Dawn's energetic vibration in place.

The older Summers sister sighed, "they're in my jewelry box."

Dawn got up, she ruffled through Buffy's rings and necklaces before she saw her earrings. She put them on next to the mirror, smiling as they completed the outfit she had selected for her and Jake's outing.

Buffy put aside her textbook as she stared at her sister, "how are Emry and Quil settling in?"

Dawn turned around, "they're good. A little wary of the Cullens but that's to be expected. Esme's letting them stay in a house she has in the woods, it's all very little red riding hood with wolves."

Buffy gingerly got off her bed, careful not to make a mess, "how's Jake dealing with being an alpha?"

Dawn eyed a little hole in the carpet, she began trying to poke a hole in it with her shoe, "it's slow going, but he's adjusting."

Buffy approached her, she raised her taller sister's chin to face her in the eyes, "listen to me. It is *not* your fault that Jake now has to deal with this, he would have had to deal with the responsibility eventually- it's better that he has you to support him."

Dawn nodded as her sister grinned and pulled her into a hug, she was just about to let Buffy go when the short blonde commented casually "besides, I've been wanting to have words with that Sam guy, I think it's time that I paid a visit to the shifter pack."

Dawn gasped, "Buffy no!"

The slayer raised an eyebrow at the outburst.

Dawn continued, "don't go threatening the dude just cause you have to go get your kicks somehow. Please, Jake's just starting to make some headway with Sam and the pack- don't ruin it for him."

Buffy huffed, "fine."

She raised a finger, "but! If there's trouble, make sure that I'm the person that you come to. I know I may be an oldie in the slaying game, but I can still intimidate with the best of them."

Dawn rolled her eyes, "I'd bring you in just for the shock factor, Sam would never expect such an itty bitty thing like you to pack your strength."

Buffy grinned with smugness.

Dawn headed out of her room, just as she was about to close the door she called back, "besides- if I'm going for the intimidation factor, I'd probably call Faith."

She giggled and shut the door just as one of the throw pillows hit her back as an impromptu missile.

Bella gaped openly as she took in 'their' clearing.

It was the one where Edward revealed his secret to her last year, the beauty of it still managed to steal her breath away and fill her with awe.

But what Edward had done? It upped the wow factor by a thousand.

There were almost a thousand candles flickering in the clearing, the firelight danced golden before her eyes as Edward stood in the middle of it all.

The snow blanketed the earth with a pristine cover, the trees stood around them throwing shadows and dancing with the candle light in a slow waltz that slowed her heartbeat to its rhythm.

"Oh my god, this is so beautiful," Bella breathed out.

Edward smiled softly as he came forward. He took her hand and kissed her fingertips lightly as her eyes grew with the magic of the evening.

Jake's truck slowly pulled out, Bella glanced back to see her best friend wink at them as he drove off.

She didn't know when the guys had planned it, but Jake had come to her house exclaiming that she needed to put on her prettiest outfit and come with him for a surprise.

He had then proceeded to drive her out to the clearing where Edward was waiting for her.

"How?" she questioned.

Edward's golden eyes flashed with mirth, "Dawn helped us plan it."

Bella snorted, how her other best friend had managed to plan this whole thing out without her finding out what was going on- it was a mystery.

Edward smiled at her as he brought their lips together. Their kiss was lingering, sweet, soulful.

Ever since Willow's spell to curb their bloodlust, Edward was getting more and more forward with how far he'd allow their physical relationship to go.

He wasn't as terrified of breaking Bella, his advances were a little more impatient, a little more daring.

Bella sighed with happiness as they broke apart.

"I love you more than life itself," he whispered.

His intensity was always there, bubbling just beneath the surface, pulling Bella into it's undertow with an urgency she never had the will to resist.

"I love you too," she replied.

"I saw our life together when we were in LA, I saw our future," Edward murmured eyes still locked on hers.

"Yeah? How was it?" Bella brushed a lock of his unruly bronze hair back from his forehead.

"It was beautiful," Edward kissed her lips once more.

Bella gasped as he then proceeded to drop down to one knee in the middle of the snow filled clearing.

With the candles flickering madly around them, he took her hand in his.

Edward then pulled out a small velvet box out of his jacket pocket, "you are my everything, you are my present, my future- my all."

Tears were rolling down her eyes as she opened the box, a beautiful solitaire diamond glittered encased within the fabric.

"Will you marry me?"

She didn't even have to think about it, she just nodded mutely, the tears choking the words that were ready to spill from her tongue.

He put the ring on her finger and Bella marveled at the coldness of it against the heat of her skin, an inconceivably tiny observation in the larger scheme of things- but her nerves latched on to it like a lifeboat.

Edward got up with a grin, he kissed her once more as she finally started laughing. She was getting married! She clamped her arms around his neck as he spun her in a circle.

Only the trees witnessed the first chapter in the collective history of the newly formed Cullen family branch, but it was enough for them both.

Aro looked dispassionately at the gleeful Victoria.

He cocked his head to the side, watching her eyes follow his every movement. "You *are* sure about this?"

"Of course I am sir," Victoria purred, pleasure written all over her features at the thought of the pain about to be inflicted on the Cullen family.

Aro smiled gently as he stroked his hand on the kneeling girl's head, blood red curls tingled pleasantly as they fell through his marble fingers.

"You did good child," he murmured.

His court awaited his next decision, Aro raised his head to meet Jane's gaze. He motioned at the kneeling redhead.

"If you follow Jane, she will be sure to thank you for the loyalty you have shown to the Volturi," Aro smiled.

Victoria got up off her knees, eyes glittering with anticipation and malicious glee as she bowed to Aro and turned to follow Jane.

The psychotic vampire masquerading as a young girl cocked a finger to their visitor as they left.

Aro faced his court. There was a silence as he thought.

Marcus broke the pause with a carefully controlled cadence, "we should deal with the slayer problem as soon as possible."

Aro nodded, "if she is allowed to remain with them for any longer, there is a chance that she'll find out the truth about us."

Marcus jerked violently, "this cannot be allowed to happen!"

Aro moved off his throne, his never changing shadow- Renata flowed with him silently, "I know."

He motioned at Caius who blurred to his side, "find out everything you can on Buffy Summers, her weaknesses, her strengths. If we are going to take her down, we need to be as prepared as possible."

Victoria's frenzied screaming reached their ears, Marcus smiled grimly as he listened to the agitated, pain filled yells coming from the next room.

Aro continued, "we have to be smart about this, the slayer should have no way of finding out about us," he paused chuckling, "except for the myths and legends of course."

Marcus smirked, "of course."

The two leaders shared a conspiratorial smile. The doors flew open as Chelsea slowly slinked inside, she dropped to her knee, deference in every aspect of her posture.

"Yes?" Aro raised an eyebrow groomed by three thousand years of tradition.

"Your meal is ready," the female vampire bowed.

Faintly in the background of the great mansion, human heartbeats could be heard, terror stricken and fear induced into a thumping rhythm of death coming on swift wings.

Aro smiled.

**34. 3**

Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! They really inspire me and make my day to know that people are still enjoying this story and following my writing.

Dawn and Jake cuddled in the movie theatre, he ran his fingers through her hair as they both chuckled at the comedy on screen.

"How do you think they're doing?" Dawn whispered as quietly as she could.

"She'll say yes," Jake murmured back.

"Hmm," Dawn frowned as she twitched involuntarily.

Jake looked at her, "why?"

Someone shushed them and Dawn fell quiet, "I'll tell you later," she whispered.

They drove to the restaurant in silence, Jake glanced at Dawn worriedly "so what was it back in the movie theatre?"

She shrugged, "nothing."

Jake rolled his eyes and grimaced, "come on Dawn, I know you. That wasn't nothing, that was a pretty big something."

There was a pregnant pause in the car, Dawn sighed as she shifted sideways to face him.

"I don't want you to think that I'm a huge bitch when I say this," she pouted.

Jake snorted, "I won't."

"Promise?"

Jake turned to face her with a raised eyebrow as they sat at a red light.

"Alright," Dawn smoothed out her jeans, "I think that they're making a mistake getting married this early."

He gaped as a car honked behind them, the light had turned green.

They drove in silence for another two minutes before he found his voice again, "why?"

Dawn wiped her hand on the window's foggy surface, the condensation wetting her fingers as she thought of a way to better phrase her reasoning.

"Why are they in such a hurry? It's not like it's a matter of life and death, I just don't think that they should be entering marriage lightly before they've really had a chance to grow up as people."

Jake was silent, "weren't you the one that was all excited for them getting married? I seem to remember you going shopping for the candles with the girls last week."

Dawn frowned, "what was I going to do? Tell Edward that no, he shouldn't be proposing to my best friend because I think it's icky to get married at eighteen?"

Jake stared straight ahead as they pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant, "Dawnie, listen- are you sure that this is the only reason why you're upset? You're not mad at Bella?"

Dawn slumped, shoulders forward, long brunette hair covering her face, "I just," she whispered, "I just don't want to lose her too."

Jake undid his seatbelt, scooting closer to his girlfriend he asked gently, "why do you think you'll lose her?"

"Because," Dawn huffed in frustration, "she'll turn into a 'we' person, someone married at our age doesn't stay friends with her old friends, she'll start being all about Edward and I'll never see her again!"

She winced, she knew she sounded petulant, but there was a very real part of her that was upset about Bella getting married.

This was the first best friend that she'd had that was truly hers, away from Sunnydale and the influence of the Hellmouth, away from the scoobs- Bella was Dawn's friend.

And Dawn felt terrified that she'd lose her.

Jake snorted, he chuckled lightly, "Dawnie, Bells is already pretty wrapped in her boyfriend- I don't think that there's anyway of her getting worse."

Dawn wailed, feeling childish but still doing it all the same, "but what if she does?"

Jake hugged her close to him, half in amusement and half in an effort to stop the oncoming tantrum, "talk to her," he kissed the tip of Dawn's nose, "she's your best friend too, be honest about your concerns. Bells is good with listening to people's crazy rambles."

Dawn laughed as she snuggled into her boyfriend's side, "yeah- she must be. She's been friends with *you* for what? Ten years now?"

"Hey!" Jake called out and began tickling the madly giggling brunette at his side.

"Thanks Missus Cullen, this is real nice of you," Quil murmured as he grinned at the kind vampire woman who had been bringing them food to the cottage for the last two days.

"It's no problem, I cook enough for my huge brood at the big house and this is just a little bit compared to what the rest of us eat," she told him as she scooped up the coconut rice into his and Embry's bowls.

She continued, "you should come up, eat a meal with us, it's loud and boisterous but the family would love if it if you came."

Quil hesitated as he took the large pot from her to the sink.

It had become a sort of temporary tradition, she would bring them food, arrange their table while he would wash the pot for her to take back to the house.

Quil had been raised to be polite and neat, it didn't matter that the situation was a little stranger than normal- he would still follow the guidelines his mother had set for him way back in the day.

Embry was still too shy to deal with any of the Cullens or the loud humans living with them, he preferred to stay in the back of the house whenever Esme came over.

It had become Quil's responsibility to deal with others whenever Jake wasn't there and they weren't working on the new pack's business.

It was Quil with his jokes, his easy mannerisms and his inherent charisma that won over Esme and in turn Carlisle.

He had shared Embry's shyness with the kind matriarch of the extended Cullen family and Esme had began leaving little chocolate treats for the largely absent boy whenever she came over with food.

Quil told her about Embry's fondness for sweets and how much the quiet shifter was feeling disconnected from the rest of his friends because of the pack division, Esme decided to do something to cheer him up in any way she could- she brought him chocolates and tried to cook some of his favorite foods.

"Thanks Missus Cullen, this is amazing as usual," Quil smiled as he handed back the now clean pot.

He sat in the chair as Esme began putting her containers and pots back into her back, leaning back on it he called out "Embry! Get your skinny ass out here, it's dinner time!"

Quil took in Esme's disapproving frown, he scratched the back of his neck in consternation "sorry, I always forget not to swear in front of adults. It's been so long since we've been around people older than Sam for long periods of time," he shrugged.

Esme stilled, "what about your parents?"

"What about them?" Quil began laughing, "Missus Cullen- it's not like we've ever been abused or mistreated, it's just the pack is what's family to us."

His eyes looked down at the table, "this is why we followed Jake instead of staying with Sam. *Jake* is our family now."

Esme smiled as she brushed a lock of his curly, dark brown hair back off his forehead, "well Jake is our family too," she continued as Embry silently padded into the room, "and all of us hope that with time- both of you, and anyone else that follows Jacob will think of us as family also."

Quil grinned widely, even with his previous doubts about the vampires and the very long history of rivalry and animosity the pack had with the Cullens- he still really liked Esme.

She came to visit and chat at least three times a day, often staying to play board games with him or show him around the forest.

Carlisle had come just that morning, he brought newspapers and comic books for Embry.

Both boys didn't know when they'd be going back to see their families, it wasn't like their parents would become overwhelmed with worry- Embry and Quil had a long history of disappearing to stay with friends for days at a time.

It was a matter of setting up the new pack structure now, a matter of strengthening old bonds and developing new ones.

"Hello Embry," Esme smiled gently as the quiet boy waved at her before sitting down to eat.

"How are you Missus Cullen?" Embry asked as he ladled the rice and chicken onto a plate.

"I'm good, we're beginning to plan for Buffy's birthday- I hope that you boys will be able to make it," Esme replied.

"We'll try to Missus Cullen," Quil mumbled around a mouthful of coconut rice.

Esme got up from her chair, she grinned as she motioned at Quil "don't talk with your mouth full honey," she opened the door to leave, "and for God's sake, start calling me Esme, I was only twenty six when I got turned- it's bad enough that my kids are married, but now you're starting to make me feel old too."

Quil almost choked with laughter as she left, he was heartened to see that Embry was smiling also.

**35. 2**

This is to all the people that have been reviewing, reccing and just following the story!

Dawn stood in the art class, the teacher had been awesome enough to allow her a time slot to paint after school. Part of Buffy's request to come work at Forks High was that Dawn be allowed to develop her skills for university and thankfully the art department was reasonable enough to comply.

She smiled as she slowly traced the edge of her sister's smile. Buffy's birthday was next week and she had decided to do a portrait of the two of them with their mom. The sort of handmade gift that Buffy had always liked.

As usual, the smell of the paints calmed her considerably, slowing her thoughts down to a manageable pace so that she could sort through them, picking the most important ones out to examine.

She had been avoiding both Bella and Edward ever since the announcement of their engagement, she knew that she was acting immaturely but she still didn't feel ready to face either one of them.

Jake had reprimanded her, albeit in his own gentle way but she still felt disappointed in her best friend.

Speak of the devil.

Bella stood at the doorway of the classroom, a green long sleeved shirt layered with a black tee, it contrasted beautifully with her auburn hair and the smile on her face lit her up from within.

She knocked, "hey Dawnie, you busy?"

Dawn raised her eyes, she grimaced inwardly, it was probably time for her to face Bella.

"Nah, just painting Buffy's present." Dawn shook her head.

Bella came to face the easel, she gasped "oh that's beautiful!" She smiled at Dawn, "you have a real talent you know that?"

"Thanks Bells," Dawn nodded.

Bella sighed, "why have you been avoiding me?"

Dawn paused in her movements.

Her friend continued, "I mean, ever since you heard about the engagement you haven't spent more than an hour with either me or Edward. What's going on?"

Dawn's blue eyes were shadowed as they met Bella's hazel ones, the taller girl was struggling to put voice to her emotions.

"Bells, you know that you're my best friend right?"

Bella nodded, "of course."

Dawn continued, "and I only want the best for you no matter what."

She nodded again.

Dawn put the paintbrush to the side, she licked her lips in nervousness "when are you guys planning the wedding?"

Bella grinned, "fall probably."

Dawn crossed her arms as she looked at her best friend, "I think you're making a big mistake doing this so soon."

"WHAT?" Bella stepped away in shock.

"Bells, just listen to me," Dawn raised her hands in supplication, "please."

"Fine, talk," Bella crossed her arms defensively.

"Listen, you guys have been together for like a year right? Why do you feel the need to rush things?"

Bella's voice cracked, "because we love each other. I thought you'd get that."

Dawn nodded, desperately trying to reach her friend's consciousness "and I do, trust me I do. But the thing is Bell, you're only eighteen. If you guys get married this year, you're going to have to make major changes in your life- Edward's a vampire, never forget that. Take some time to enjoy life without complications, you're still a teenager you know?"

Bella looked like she was about to protest, Dawn made a movement to continue.

"Bells," she squeezed the shorter girl's arm with affection and worry, "he hasn't even become that close to Charlie. Your dad's just beginning to get used to the supernatural, give him time to get used to everything- he's your family. Just, the decision to get married shouldn't be just because you're crazy in love with your boyfriend. Think about everything, do the mature thing Bella- you're not a kid anymore."

Bella ripped her hand away from Dawn, "how dare you!? Why can't you just be happy for me? I always knew that you never liked Edward, but to actually say shit like this to me? What kind of friend are you?"

Dawn ran a hand through her hair in exasperation, "God! Do you ever listen to yourself? It's not about Edward! The whole world doesn't revolve around your boyfriend, no matter how much you think it does!"

Bella looked angrier with every word.

"I'm your best friend because I tell you the truth, because I tell you to get your head out of your ass. Stop making Edward your whole world, don't be stupid Bella. It's not like I'm telling you not to marry him, I'm telling you to wait."

Bella stepped away from Dawn, " I can't listen to this right now," she shook her head.

Dawn reached out, "just, if you don't want to talk to me- talk to Buffy. She's been working with teenagers for the last five years, she's really good at what she does. If you don't trust me to tell you the truth, trust her."

Bella grimaced and turned around to leave.

Dawn called out, "you're still my best friend Bells! And if you think about it, you'll realize I'm only doing this cause I love you!"

Bella left.

Buffy hummed to herself as she cooked. It was the weekly Sunday dinner at the Cullens, each and every member of the large family would congregate in the big house to eat together. Esme had made most of the bigger dishes and Buffy had volunteered to cook some of her specialties.

Gunn was the first to arrive, he had gotten a job in town with a timber company. He was saving up money to go visit his family, he refused to take any help from Carlisle.

"Hey girl, it sure smells good in here," he murmured drawing Buffy into a hug.

She grinned, "thanks Gunn," she motioned up the stairs, "Emmett and Spike are upstairs- they're planning something," she lowered her voice to a whisper "I really don't want to know what they're doing together in a closed room."

Gunn cracked up laughing and headed upstairs to join his friends.

Spike had been unofficially adopted into the Cullen clan, Lindsey was still working on creating a full identity for Spike in the modern world.

Spike was talking about going back to school, now that he didn't have to be all badass vampire- his more nerdy side was coming out in full force and he was insistent that he be an educated man in his new chance at life.

Emmett and Spike took to each other instantly, they were almost inseparable- two peas in a pod. Albeit, two pervy peas in a trouble making pod.

Whenever Gunn was over at the house, he added a third to their troublemaking duo- it all led to an excess of yelling and things breaking but Esme had confided in Buffy that this was the most excitement their family had in ages.

Lindsey was still more absent than usual, he did work for them but he wasn't as present at family functions as he used to be. Buffy felt a pang of sadness at that. But she knew that he had to come to terms with his life on his own schedule and she wasn't going to rush him.

She added more cilantro to the spaghetti sauce, it smelled amazing. She couldn't cook everything, but the things that she did know how to make- she was very good at them.

Bella and Edward were in next, both of them looked thoughtful, holding hands and conversing quietly.

"Hey guys!" Buffy waved at them with a bright grin.

Edward waved back at her with a small smile, he kissed the top of his fiancee's head and told her "I trust you to do the right thing."

Bella smiled back at him and headed towards Buffy as Edward left to find Jazz.

"Hey Bells, how's it going?" Buffy asked her. She knew that Dawn and Bella had a disagreement but Dawn seemed sure that her friend would eventually come to her senses. She had talked to her older sister about the possibility of giving the newly engaged couple some advice and Buffy had agreed to listen to them.

"It's good, has Dawn talked to you yet?" Bella answered keeping her eyes down.

Buffy stopped her stirring, she lowered the heat on the sauce "yeah, she said that you might need to talk to me. She didn't tell me what about though."

Bella took a deep breath, "yeah, we had a fight. I'm going to apologize to her a bit later, but I wanted to ask if you'd talk to me and Edward."

Buffy frowned, "about what?"

"We're thinking about the wedding and whether we want to push it back, have a long engagement. Dawn was right when she said that us getting married would affect other people too, and we need to approach this like adults if we want to be taken seriously."

Buffy smiled, she came around the counter, lifting Bella's chin to meet her gaze she told her "absolutely. Let's set a time to talk about everything after dinner, I would love to help you in any way I can."

Bella let out a breath, "oh thank you!" She jumped up to hug the older woman.

"You rock you know that?" Bella told her.

Buffy tapped her chin with one finger and uttered thoughtfully, "I *have* been told that, yes. But I can never hear enough about my awesomeness."

Bella laughed hugging her once more.

Dawn sat bundled up outside on a log, Quil, Embry and Jake were running in the forest, from time to time doubling back to her to show their happiness.

She grinned at their infectious enthusiasm.

"Dawnie?"

Dawn turned around, Bella was padding into the forest, stumbling slightly over the rough terrain, jacket slightly unzipped and purple hat askew on her head.

"Hey Bells," Dawn smiled at her and patted the log for the other girl to sit.

Bella flopped down.

There was an awkward silence and then she blurted out, "I'm sorry!"

Dawn raised an eyebrow, "for what?"

Bella motioned with her hand "for being such a bitch to you. I know you were trying to tell me something important and I totally freaked out."

Dawn grinned "hey, that's what best friends are for."

She leaned down and scooped some snow off the ground "it's not like I'm not happy that you're engaged, I just want you to take some time and be smart about it. You're doing something crazy important, something that's going to impact the rest of your life. It's my duty as your best friend to make sure that you do the best job you can with your life."

Dawn looked at the scooped pristine snow, she winked at Bella "and this is for being unreasonable," she jumped off the log and threw the snow at Bella's face.

The shorter girl sputtered, she wiped off her face with a huge grin blossoming on her features "I'll get you for that!"

Dawn shouted at her, "try and catch me!" She then proceeded to start running through the trees, laughing as Bella gave chase.

Carlisle smelled the air, his vampiric senses could make out the minute details of the spices used for the dinner even though the smell wasn't the least appetizing to him.

He picked out one of his favorite shirts from his closet, a light purple that contrasted nicely with his blonde hair.

Esme sidled up to him, she wrapped her arms around his back, the both of them looked at the mirror showing their reflections, even after eighty years together they were still in love as ever.

It was one of the biggest differences with them and the usual race of vampires, they had their reflections.

Esme had to smile at the thought of what Rose would do if she was denied the chance to primp at her mirror daily.

"Our anniversary is coming up," Carlisle murmured to her turning around to kiss his wife's lips.

"I know," Esme breathed out, a habit she still hadn't lost as she lost herself to her husband's attentions.

"Do you think Buffy will like her birthday present?" Carlisle rained a torrent of kisses on her marble skin.

Esme shivered, "she'll love it," bringing her husband closer to her she purred "and now shut up and let me enjoy my present."

Carlisle chuckled as he lost himself in his wife.

Buffy gasped as she took in the two snow covered forms that entered the door, Bella and Dawn were completely covered in white, both laughing pink cheeked as the jostled each other.

"Oh my god, what are you two, twelve?" Buffy reprimanded jokingly.

"Go upstairs quickly, take a hot shower before you catch colds and change your clothes for god's sake," she shoved the two of them up the stairs.

"Yes mom," Dawn stuck her tongue out.

"Don't mess with me brat," Buffy pinched her sister.

Dawn snorted laughing as she ran up the stairs. Bella racing to get up there first.

Buffy shook her head with a smile.

The door opened again and Jake came inside, followed by two young guys.

Buffy grinned widely. Finally, Quil and Embry decided to join them for dinner.

Jake looked sheepish as he came out of the winter weather, all three of them wore just cut off shorts.

"Hey Jake," Buffy reached up to hug her sister's boyfriend. She was beginning to think of Jake as a little brother too, she really liked him, he was respectful and kind.

Jake had to bend almost in two as he hugged her back.

He stepped back and gestured to the two silent guys, one smiling widely and the other quiet.

The grinning one stepped forward, "hi I'm Quil."

"Hi Quil, I'm Buffy," she surprised him by hugging him too.

Jake had to almost shove the other guy forward, he introduced him "this is Embry, he's a bit shy before he warms up to you."

Buffy had to grin at the exasperated look the quiet boy shot at his friend, "hiya Embry. Don't worry about it, we can be kind of overwhelming but we're pretty cool once you get to know us."

Embry slowly began to smile, dark eyes sparkling with relief at this gentle acceptance "thanks."

Buffy motioned, "can I give you a hug too?"

Embry looked between Quil and Jake, both of them smiled encouragingly at him, he nodded shyly as he stepped forward to hug the petite blonde.

Jake grinned at the scene in front of him. He knew how incredibly hard interaction with outsiders came to Embry. It still shocked him that the shy boy had chosen to follow him but he felt very humbled by the trust placed in him by both Embry and Quil.

He knew that if the two guys in his pack were comfortable with Buffy, chances were that they'd slowly come around to be comfortable with the rest of the family. The blonde slayer was one of the warmest people Jake had ever met. She and Dawn were the bridge that allowed him to see the Cullen family for the warm people that they were, and he hoped that both Quil and Embry would get the same treatment that he had.

Buffy passed the potatoes to Dawn, her sister and Bella were laughing, having made up from their fight they were now inseparable once more.

Jake sat next to Quil and Embry, the two boys looked like they were slowly warming up to the family. It helped that everybody was making an effort to making them feel comfortable.

Esme and Carlisle were acting extra lovey dovey, holding hands and sharing secret looks.

Buffy smiled at the two of them, she hoped that one day she too would have that level of love and comfort with somebody.

The doorbell rang.

She volunteered to go see who it was.

"Hey Buff, can you bring more gravy on the way back?" Gunn called.

"Sure," she replied.

She opened the door with a smile, Lindsey was standing there with a bottle of red wine.

He smiled at her, bright blue eyes twinkling with usual mischief as he drawled "well, well Miss Summers, you certainly look ravishing tonight."

Buffy narrowed her gaze, dueling desires of either hitting him with a ladle or kissing him senseless marking her with indecision.

Lindsey solved the problem for her, "I'm so sorry I was away for so long."

"You should be," she lightly smacked his chest.

Lindsey took a deep breath, "Buffy, I'm going to Texas tomorrow."

"What?" Buffy took a step outside, closing the door behind her for privacy.

It was damn cold and she shivered as she poked his chest, "what are you talking about?"

Lindsey smirked, "hold this," he gave her the bottle.

He took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders, taking back the bottle he continued "I *think* it's time for me to make peace with my past."

He stepped closer to her and Buffy shivered for a completely different reason. She had forgotten how much she missed his smell, the feeling of closeness to him.

Lindsey stroked her face with one calloused thumb, looking in her eyes he told her "I want a future with you, I want the whole nine yards. But before I can do that, I need to make sure that my past isn't influencing me anymore."

Buffy's shoulders sagged even as currents of electricity raced through her skin at his touch. "Do you *have* to leave?"

He nodded sadly, "yeah. I realized that the reason why I've done so much shit in my life is cause I've been running away from my past, away from my family. I need to go back, I need to get closure."

Buffy stared at him, sighing she snuggled into his chest "when will you be back?"

Lindsey wrapped his hands around her, the left one still holding the wine bottle "as soon as I can." He kissed her temple tenderly.

Buffy sniffed and stepped back, "are you going to come in? It's Sunday dinner."

Lindsey smiled, "yeah, I'm going to talk to Carlisle about doing the job over the internet. It's just a matter of documentation, I'm sure I can do what he needs over long distance."

Buffy took off his jacket, she handed it back to him. "Will you write?"

Lindsey leaned down to kiss her. She sighed at his taste, cool spearmint and a hint of the bitter coffee that he must have drank before coming.

"Every day," he murmured against her skin.

Willow was almost vibrating in place, oh Goddess she was so late for Sunday dinner.

And the line didn't look like it was moving at all!

She was responsible for bringing dessert, she had promised to get a cake in town. And now she was almost half an hour late, the bakery was overcrowded, people were milling around and the air felt stifling.

Willow had to stamp down the urge to start yelling to hurry up, it wouldn't do to alienate the locals.

Especially since she was gunning for a job in the herbal shop that she had become a regular at. Everybody knew that in small towns like this, gossip traveled fast and she didn't need to gain a reputation as a bitch within the first month of moving to Forks.

She huffed and looked at her watch again, "damn it!" she whispered.

"You're running late somewhere?" an amused male voice asked her.

"Yeah, my family's traditional weekly dinner. I was supposed to bring dessert and I'm so late," she wailed. Bringing her gaze up she was shocked to see Charlie Swan standing next to her.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered.

He shrugged, "I was buying a cake."

Lifting up a brightly colored box he showed her, "it's a peace offering for some friends. I'm hoping that I'll get a second chance with them."

Willow breathed out, "oh Charlie," she grinned weakly. The sense of huge relief that he wanted to come back was almost overwhelming.

Charlie smiled at her and Willow had to stop herself from swooning.

The dark haired man was almost too good looking, his features weren't the perfectly balanced components of bland perfection- his face had character. And Willow was always attracted to character.

He continued, " *and* I was hoping to get a second chance with this beautiful woman that I've recently met."

Willow could feel tears gathering behind her eyelids, she blinked them back. She offered her hand, with a crackly voice she introduced herself "Willow Rosenberg."

Charlie grinned, a slow, completely male smile that turned Willow's knees to jelly "Charlie Swan."

His hand felt completely hot against her skin, long fingers almost enveloping her dainty ones completely.

Willow grinned, second chances rocked.

**36. Buffy's birthday 1**

"What if he doesn't like it?" Willow fluttered between the bed and the dresser, hands shaking with nervousness, eyes glancing at her reflection every couple of seconds to make sure that everything was coming along nicely.

"He *will*," Rose assured her. The blonde was sitting on Willow's bed, idly looking through the witch's jewelry box, trying to find the perfect pair of earring to go with her outfit.

"But what if he doesn't? Rose, he used to date Buffy! I'm no Buffy for goddess's sake! She's all leather wearing and with the badass, and I'm just Willow who babbles and gets all freaky high when working the big mojo-"

Rose stepped into Willow's personal space and with the practiced ease of a newly fledged friendship, she put a delicate hand against the shorter girl's mouth.

"You'll be fine. Charlie asked you out cause he likes *you*. He and Buffy are done. And you are a beautiful, intelligent woman with a boatload of power who he'll be lucky to date. You got that?"

Willow grinned tremulously, she went on her tippy toes and gave Rose a hug.

Pulling back from her, she went back to putting on her makeup, every couple of moments sharing an amused glance with her friend's reflection.

"You're not as bitchy as you'd like people to believe, you know that?" Willow commented.

Rose snorted, pale fingers picking out a golden leaf necklace for her redheaded friend to wear "it's my deep dark secret."

They shared a wide smile.

A companiable silence stretched in the room and then Rose cleared her throat.

"Hey Wills? When we were in LA and you went all mother earth on us, do you know what each one of us saw?"

Willow slowly turned around, bright green eyes inquisitive. "Nah, I was sort of in a trance. It was Gaia that sent you the visions, I think they were tailored to what each one of you wanted. A sort of reward for going up against Wolfram and Hart. Why?"

Rose slowly raised her golden gaze to meet that of her friend, there was such hope shining through the older girl's soul. "I saw my daughter."

Willow completely stopped her movements, "what?"

"I saw mine and Emmett's daughter," Rose smiled a little brokenly, "I've always wanted kids but this was the first time that I ever really thought I'd be able to have a child."

"Oh my God," Willow breathed out reaching for her friend's cold hand, she squeezed Rose's fingers "what did she look like? Was she human?"

Rose's smile grew, "she was human. I don't remember what she looked like, but I knew that she was ours and that I loved her more than anything in the world…I think that we had adopted her."

"Wow," Willow leaned back on her swiveling chair, "have you talked to Emmett about this?"

Rosalie nodded, "yeah. He wants kids too."

Willow jumped up and clapped her hands in excitement, she dragged her friend up "oh my goddess! You know what this means? You're going to be a mama!" She began jumping up and down squeeing with excitement.

Rose joined her for a couple of very loud moments, but then she stopped her friend's obvious glee "wait a sec Wills! How are me and Emmett going to adopt though?"

Willow rolled her eyes, "Rosie, you've got a mega powerful wicca living in your house, a super smart formerly evil lawyer on your dad's payroll. We'll figure something out, so shut up and celebrate the fact that you're going to be a mommy!"

Rose cocked an eyebrow at her friend's exuberance then shrugged and resumed their previous bouncing and squealing.

Buffy sat in the small coffee shop drinking her skinny vanilla latte.

Even though nobody in the family was particularly religious, and they ended up skipping Christmas this year because of all the hubbub during the winter- it still felt like Esme was cooking heavier foods in the cold.

Buffy had to smile, her aunt was the biggest mother hen around and now that her family had practically doubled- she seemed to glow at the opportunity to mother them all.

She checked her watch, it was almost five o'clock. She was meeting Bella and Edward here for their talk, they both wanted to choose somewhere neutral, somewhere they wouldn't be disturbed. So they all settled on an out of town coffee shop, plus Willow had made them a privacy amulet. All Buffy had to do was smash the crystal inside and for three hours, they would have all the privacy they needed.

She was a bit early because her last appointment got canceled at the school, so she had decided to come ahead of time and work on some case files in the relative quiet outside of Forks High.

The door opened, winter wind moving the wind chimes in a melody of welcome.

Buffy smiled and waved at the two familiar faces, Bella's pink with frost and Edward's usually pale one.

Bella waved back at her, stumbling over a customer's table and her boyfriend casually steering her away from imminent disaster with customary suaveness.

Bella blushed like mad as Edward pulled out a chair for her in a practiced move.

He had such tenderness written on his normally taciturn features as he took care of his clumsy girlfriend that Buffy just had to smile at them. Young love and all that.

"I'm so smooth," Bella snarked as she flopped down in the chair closing her eyes with one hand in embarrassment.

Buffy laughed as Edward sat down "it's okay, Eddy's smooth enough for the both of you."

Edward grinned, something he had been doing a lot more often since his two cousins had moved to Forks.

Buffy signaled to the waitress, she turned to Bella and asked "do you want anything? It's my treat, it's payday," she grinned widely.

Bella nodded, she smiled at the girl who had come to take their order "hi, can I have a cranberry muffin please?"

"Sure," the waitress moved away to another table.

Edward looked around, the place wasn't packed but it still had some customers. His eyebrow rose in consternation "are you sure that this place is good for talking?"

Buffy took off the leather covered crystal she had been wearing around her neck the whole day, she placed it on the table "yuppers, Willow's little privacy crystal will do all the work for keeping our talk super secret."

The waitress dropped off Bella's muffin and moved away. Buffy made sure that no one was paying attention as she ground the crystal under her palm, it made a little crunching noise.

The air smelled like mint for a second, Willow's magical signature could be felt.

Buffy grinned, "alright, so now we're good to talk. What's going on?"

Bella fidgeted in place, nervous fingers ripping the napkin in front of her into a million tiny pieces.

Edward sighed and began, "its about the wedding."

Buffy nodded "okay, what's up with the wedding?"

"We're thinking of pushing it back," Bella stumbled over the words.

"Why?"

"Because we realized that there are so many things we still haven't covered in our relationship," Bella's words tumbled out of her.

Edward picked up the thread of the conversation, " I still need to get to know Bella's parents, if we're going to be a family- we want them to be involved in our lives you know? Plus, we need to figure something out about the obvious issue of Bella being a human and me a vampire."

Buffy began taking small notes as she listened, she smiled at the maturity the young couple were showing "those are all very good reasons."

Edward chuckled "yeah, you and Dawn were the first people outside of us that really became a part of our family. And now, we have Gunn, Spike, Lindsey, Jake and the pack. You've shown us that we don't have to hide from others, that we can still be a family even if we're different from each other."

Bella smiled, "yeah, we want to have that with Charlie and Renee."

Buffy grinned widely as she felt her heart expand with the warmth and affection she was feeling for the two young people sitting in front of her, "I bet Esme and Carlisle will love having new people around."

Bella laughed, "where there's sixteen, there's twenty."

Dawn sat cross legged, cards splayed firmly against her chest as she eyed her opponents.

Jake sat straight across from her, Quil next to him.

Embry sat next to her, the shy boy was grinning. Dawn had to sigh, he either had a great bluff going or he just plain sucked at cards.

They were playing a doubles tournament of a card game that Faith had taught her last time she visited, her and Embry against her boyfriend and Quil.

So far, they were losing.

"Okay, let's get the cards on the table," Jake murmured.

She narrowed her gaze at her boyfriend's smirk, exchanging a glance with Embry she sighed and opened her hand.

Jake won over her, now they needed an extra twenty points to win the game which would be almost impossible.

Only two card combinations added up to the number of points needed, and Dawn made peace with the fact that they were probably going to lose.

"You go first," Embry told Quil.

Their resident loudmouth grinned widely and displayed his cards with a flourish, "boo-yah!"

Dawn raised an eyebrow even as Jake exchanged a high five with his best friend.

Embry didn't look as worried as he should be, she cocked her head to the side as she examined his blank features.

As Jake and Quil were busy doing some sort of really complicated hand clapping, finger twisting, nose pinching celebratory ritual; Embry braved a moment and winked at her.

Dawn gaped, that sneaky little bastard!

She had to stifle her own grin as Embry cleared his throat. "We're not done yet."

Quil rolled his eyes in exaggeration, "oh come on Em, you know you never win."

Dawn smacked his arm, "shut up, let him show his cards."

"Fine," Quil drawled out.

One by one Embry laid his cards on the table, a silence descended on the room and then it erupted into predictably indignated sputtering "what? How? But you suck at cards!"

Dawn just grinned and gave Embry a high five over the table as they collected their winnings, the last of Esme's incredibly awesome triple chocolate cookies.

They saluted each other and leaned back to watch Jake and Quil posture and try to figure out whether Embry had cheated or not.

"When'd you get so good by the way?" Dawn whispered.

"I've been practicing with Spike," Embry inclined his head to her.

"Ah," Dawn nodded sagely. That explained it, "he taught you how to cheat huh?"

Embry snorted "yeah, and in ways that no one will ever find out."

Dawn snickered, "who do you think taught me to cheat at poker?"

They exchanged conspiratorial grins and relaxed to watch their entertainment.

Esme flittered around the room, everything had to be perfect for Buffy's birthday. It was her twenty sixth, she had officially entered her late twenties as she had earlier lamented.

The girls had taken her out to Seattle last night for karaoke and cocktails, bringing her back slightly intoxicated and ruminating on the evils of man and alcohol. It was pretty funny to watch, *even* if Esme's motherly role confined her to clucking her tongue in disapproval as she helped the tipsy slayer up to her room- Jazz's extra studio.

Gunn's hand tried to sneak another date stuffed with prosciutto and walnuts, Esme slapped it away without even looking, her gaze still on the door.

"Ow," Gunn rubbed his fingers affrontedly.

"Serves you right for trying to cheat the missus of the house Charlie boy," Spike winked at Esme and settled back onto the couch cushions with the magazine he'd been reading.

"Stop trying to suck up to Esme, she's still not going to let you near the smoked salmon," Jazz uttered from where he was engaged in a furious tournament of Crash Bandicoot with Emmett.

"Suck it Jazzy," Spike grumbled.

"Language William," Carlisle came down the stairs.

Spike had the grace to look slightly shamed.

It was strange, the Cullen patriarch elicited respect from all the members of his family- even those of the formerly psychopathic murdering persuasion. There were many evenings that he and Spike would spend, chattering about history, going over the older writers and poets, they were both romantics at heart and loved speaking about the days gone past.

Esme took off her apron, everything looked more or less ready.

Dawn piped up, "they're coming, Alice just sent me a text!"

She immediately tried to straighten Jake's perpetually messy hair, he sighed but allowed his girlfriend's ministrations with a good natured grumble.

Dawn then moved on to Embry and Quil, she had adopted them as unofficial little brothers and was mother henning them in her own unique way.

Esme was present at the cottage earlier when Dawn had been wheedling Quil into wearing a nice shirt and slacks to the party instead of his usual t-shirt and jeans.

She had already blackmailed Embry into wearing an outfit she had picked out earlier and the quieter boy was watching TV with Jake while it sounded like Dawn and Quil were arguing loudly about the merits of jeans. It sounded like world war three as they threw clothes back and forth at each other. They had come to a compromise though, Quil was wearing a nice shirt but with a pair of jeans.

"Everybody turn off the lights!" Dawn and Jake scrambled to plunge the house into darkness.

They had to make sure that the party was at night and that no source of light could be seen, otherwise Buffy would know.

Alice, Willow and Rose had taken their cousin shopping and to a movie for the day as a girl's day out, giving everyone else ample time to prepare.

Now their car pulled into the driveway.

Everybody held their breaths as the door opened and then a thousand magical candles lit themselves at once, courtesy of Willow and the air was permeated with yells of "surprise!"

Buffy gasped at the cheering family members, friends that all surged to hug her. Her home away from home looked beautiful, candles flickered on every surface and her favorite flowers sat in glass bowls.

She finished hugging everyone and turned to Willow, "oh Wills, it looks so gorgeous, how'd you get daffodils in the middle of January?"

The redhead squeezed her tightly, she shrugged "I grew them."

Buffy laughed, "of course you did."

She looked around with shining eyes, everyone who was important to her was there: the Cullens, Bella and Charlie, Dawn and the pack, Spike and Gunn. Her heart squeezed in the reminder that Lindsey wasn't able to get a flight out from Oklahoma.

"You guys, this is so great!" she bounced excitedly on her feet, a tiny voice inside her head loudly applauding the fact that she was wearing her gorgeous new lavender dress and had her makeup and hair done in town.

"You like it?" Dawn came up to her.

"I love it," Buffy squeezed her sister's arm.

"Do you want to eat first or open presents?" Esme came up to her niece, Carlisle slid his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple as they regarded their extremely extended, large, boisterous and happy family.

"Oo, prezzies first of course!" Buffy clapped her hands in childish glee, she gave a cackle, "I love me my birthday presents!"

Spike came up to Buffy, "happy birthday slayer. Here," he handed her a CD, "Linds sent this through earlier today by urgent mail. Plus he called, something about there not being any witches in Texas or Oklahoma?" he shrugged.

"Thanks Spike, I'm glad you're here," Buffy hugged him.

"Me too," he smiled.

"Do you want to listen to the CD now or later?" Alice had a knowing gleam in her eye.

Rose rolled her eyes, "you already know what's on there don't ya?"

"Of course I do, but I'll respect Lindsey's wish to surprise her and keep quiet," the seer looked almost affronted.

Buffy snorted at her cousins' bantering, she asked Alice "can everyone listen to it?"

Alice nodded, "yeah, no audio porn for you. Unfortunately," she gave Buffy a lewd wink.

The slayer had to wrinkle her nose, it still surprised her that little, tiny, all-seeing Alice could crack dirty jokes with the best of them.

She came towards the stereo, popping the CD inside she turned up the volume.

Lindsey's soft drawl was heard and gradually everyone in the room shut up to hear what he had to say.

_"Hey darling, I'm so sorry I couldn't be there with you. I tried everything to get out of here in time, but you know the airlines- they *are* a disappointment. I promise I'll be with you as soon as I can. I miss you. _

The feelings that he couldn't express yet were still clearly heard in each and every one of his words.

A guitar strumming began and Lindsey's throaty, slightly smoky voice began singing Johnny Cash.

_The other night dear, as I lay sleeping  
I dreamed I held you in my arms  
But when I awoke, dear, I was mistaken  
So I hung my head and I cried._

_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away_

_I'll always love you and make you happy,  
If you will only say the same.  
But if you leave me and love another,  
You'll regret it all some day:_

_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away_

_You told me once, dear, you really loved me  
And no one else could come between.  
But not you've left me and love another;  
You have shattered all of my dreams:_

_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away_

_In all my dreams, dear, you seem to leave me  
When I awake my poor heart pains.  
So when you come back and make me happy  
I'll forgive you dear, I'll take all the blame._

_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away _

Buffy had tears in her eyes as Dawn hugged her tight, everything was so amazing and she felt extremely lucky that she was graced with such loving, warm people in her life.

**37. Epilogue**

Buffy smiled as she sat on the barge, the slightly tangy and salty scent of the canals smoothed over her senses and settled onto her skin like a second blanket. The first was the golden tan provided by backpacking across Europe.

Her coffee tasted slightly bitter, thick with the peculiar Dutch combination of spices and coffee grounds and altogether amazing.

It's funny how fast you can get used to different things in life, Buffy's never been much for introspection but being where she is- sitting on a barge in Amsterdam and sipping scalding coffee while tourists gawk at the beautiful architecture and take her picture while probably thinking to themselves of her as a local, it's just another reminder of how fast life can move and the different directions it can take you.

She gave a wave to a particularly enthusiastic frat boy as he almost overbalanced and fell into the water, the driver of the boat- a mustachioed dark haired man, a local for sure, glared at her for provoking the 'dumb Americans'. Buffy grinned a little self consciously.

The breeze skimmed across her skin, raising the downy hairs on her hands and roughing up the tumbles of blonde hair she had now cut to her shoulders. She liked shorter haired Buffy, this was a Buffy full of confidence, joie de vivre and a boundless optimism.

This was a Buffy that came to life on her twenty sixth birthday.

After the singing, the cutting of the cake and the crying at Lindsey's beautiful song- Carlisle and Esme had presented her with round trip first class tickets between Seattle and Paris, a Eurorail pass, a cheque for five thousand dollars and the key to their house. Every person in the house had contributed to her present, everyone giving in what they could.

Buffy felt humbled because everyone that she loved was helping her realize her dream of travel.

She had stared transfixed at them while they explained that it was time for her to follow her dream, she was so young and for once- she didn't have to shoulder all the responsibility around her. She had her aunt and uncle to help her.

They told her that Principal Green had agreed to grant her a leave of absence from work and that her thesis supervisor had agreed to her taking a mini-sabbatical.

They told her that since Dawn was practically living at the house already, it would just be a small matter of her moving her stuff into the bedroom adjoining Alice's. And the best thing was, her little sister; beautiful, intelligent and fiercely protective Dawnie had told her to go.

And so Buffy had, taking advantage of the lower fares in the middle of winter- she had spent two weeks packing up her old house and moving everything Dawn would need for the next five months into the Cullen home. Charlie had agreed to look after her boarded up home, a smiling Willow holding his hand demurely by his side all the while.

She had spent her last days in Forks for a good long while with her family, enjoying the closeness they had built together for the miracle it was.

Because Buffy had never expected to find a love so warm and all encompassing after Sunnydale, the Cullen family had come as a shock to her. They had crawled inside her walls, slammed open her defenses and broken every denial of their kinship that she might have volunteered.

Buffy had found her place with them, she worked with kids at Forks High and came home to her loud, exuberantly noisy, many times lewd and mismatched family.

She didn't know whether it was the effect of Willow's spell making the slayer line go through Faith now, but it had been a good long while since she had the old bloodlust assuage her senses. True, she still slayed as needed- but the need for a fight, the feeling of violence humming under her skin until it exploded into a spectacular firework of pain was gone.

Buffy would never be free of being the Slayer, but her supernatural identity had stopped dominating her life.

In the four and a half months since she left Forks; she had travelled to France, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Switzerland. She had spent at least a couple of weeks in each country, travelling the spots and reveling in the feeling of foreignness.

Shorter haired Buffy loved traveling on her own, she loved the feeling of relying only on yourself, the hordes of strangers she had turned into friends and casual acquaintances along her travels, the feasts she had eaten, the pictures she had taken- and the dreams she had dreamed under a different sky every month.

In the four and a half months since she left Forks, Buffy had finally discovered herself.

And if she was pressed to admit, she *really* liked the person she had uncovered underneath the layers of responsibility, guilt, burdens, hurt and old emotions.

Shorter haired Buffy was new, clean, fresh.

Shorter haired Buffy was a vagabond.

She smiled for what felt like a zillionth time since she had embarked on her trip and pulled out her laptop.

Buffy had kept in constant contact with her family, detailed updates on where she had been and uploaded pictures tracking her movements on a virtual map that Dawn had put up on the Cullen Family website she and Jazz had created. Each and every member of the now extended clan had access to everybody's updates, they could comment on each others pictures, post community messages and write private letters geared to individuals.

She clicked on Spike's link, William Cullen was enrolled as a Master's student at the University of Washington- studying the French Revolution and assisting a professor in a History of the Industrial Revolution Seminar. He was getting glowing reviews from all the undergrads- it had helped of course that he lived through the Industrial Revolution and had felt the passion for his subject. Buffy smirked, of course it didn't hinder any that he was extremely good looking and had a British accent. She knew how girls and some boys felt about those British accents.

Charles Gunn was slowly but steadily moving up within the ranks of the construction company, he was gunning for the foreman position and had a pretty good chance of getting that promotion before the summer's end.

Jazz and Alice were preparing to go do the travel thing like her. Apparently she had started a theme because their link showed their ever increasing travel itinerary, Buffy giggled as she saw that Alice had been marking all the best demon bars in Europe. Lorne was gladly conversing with them from wherever it was his travels had taken him, and he was awesome about recommending good demon sanctuaries to visit.

Buffy had been adamant that whatever bars they chose have anti-violence wards woven into them. So much so that she had spent some of her travels checking them out for herself.

She never interfered with the slayers posted in Europe by the Council, but had quietly and efficiently checked out the situation and helped out behind the scenes when she could. She still didn't want to show up on their radar and she knew that if they had ever met her, they would probably never recognize her as Buffy Summers- one of the Chosen, a legend, a fighter, a warrior. They would probably see a happy twenty something woman with a large smile and a friendly demeanor.

Now that Willow was a semi-permanent fixture in the Cullen home, she had magicked some amulets for all the vampires in the family to wear so that they wouldn't sparkle in the sun. They'd still be pale as hell, but they could now go out into the bright sunlight without acting like makeshift disco-balls.

Willow was working in the herbal shop in town, she had become a co-manager along with Leah Clearwater who used to be Jake's packmate when he ran with Sam. She and Charlie were dating, slowly but surely indoctrinating the man into the world of the supernatural. He was taking things well, as long as they didn't spring everything on him but fed him little pieces of information at a time- Charlie could definitely deal with the weirder side to life.

She clicked on Jake's link next, his page was connected to Dawn's and the pack's. He was graduating this year, he planned to go into wildlife preservation. He and Dawn were deliriously happy with each other, though never mushy the love between them was clear even in cyberspace. They'd post jokes on each others' pages, links that would stir their individual interests.

Buffy opened the file Jake had sent her, he had taken it as a matter of personal interest to keep her music library constantly updated. The guy had excellent taste in music and she loved to debate the merits of different bands with him. He would send her the up and coming bands from North America and she would send him obscure music from Europe. They had a good thing going.

Dawn had recently taken to uploading her sketches onto her site, they looked beautiful. Buffy still had the painting her sister had done for her birthday with her, she carted it around to different hotel rooms, always propping up the sunniest side of the room. It warmed the blonde's heart to see the sun's rays wash over her mom's face, it felt like Joyce was there with her.

Quil and Embry were getting ready for their senior year of high school. Quil's page was full of random questionnaires and notes on the most random things. Even when his voice couldn't be heard, the pack loudmouth was still talking as much as he could.

Embry had opened himself up, he had a kind, sensitive nature and it was hard for him to figure out what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Still, everybody supported his search to find himself. Buffy snorted, she wouldn't be surprised if Embry would be the next vagabond to go traipsing across the world in search of a deeper meaning to life.

Buffy cooed as she opened Rosie's page, little Kailey's pictures were everywhere. Rose and Emmett looked ecstatic with their daughter, they took pictures to commemorate everything she did. Buffy chuckled as she opened yet another picture gallery of Kailey just crawling around, a widely grinning Rose bouncing her baby in half the shots and a smirking Emmett holding his daughter above his head with pride.

It had taken some very creative lawyering from Lindsey and a couple of intricate spells from Willow, but Rose and Emmett Cullen were a twenty five year old couple from Forks Washington who had adopted their one year old daughter Kailey Leanne Cullen three months ago.

Kai was beautiful, all dark curls and mocha skin with sparkling hazel eyes. She was extremely well behaved too, Rose's gushing updates on her baby's almost non-existent temper were the stuff of legends within the family. Of course nobody would dare make fun of her super-mama like behavior to Rose's face, she was still the Ice Queen when she wanted to be and no one wanted a pissed off Rosalie planning their demise. Rose was the epitome of a protective mama bear.

Emmett was an awesome dad, he was laid back and funny and didn't take things too seriously. Unless someone tried to mess his with new family that is. Buffy couldn't wait to see what would happen when Kai would start dating and the impressive baseball bats Emmett was sure to threaten the boys with. But then again, with Kai's numerous uncles and all of them of the scarily overprotective variety- chances were that Emmett wouldn't even have to go brandishing a bat to scare off poor Kailey's boyfriends.

She sent off a quick message to Rose about how fast Kai was growing and clicked on the next page.

Edward and Bella's smiling faces filled up the screen. Bella was grinning widely and Edward had one of his implacably amused faces on but they were definitely happy. They had decided to go for the long engagement, after graduation they would be traveling to Arizona to meet Renee and Phil. They were currently contemplating their college options but both would probably be staying in Washington, they didn't have any reason to move away after all.

Buffy quickly commented on Bella's new hairdo, giving the younger girl a virtual thumbs up for deciding to change things up a bit. Bella had really come out of her shell and it amused Buffy all the little ways she could see her little sister's influence on the new Bella.

An instant message from Lindsey popped up, 'You look beautiful this morning.'

Buffy grinned, she had been corresponding regularly with the Texan since he left the week before her birthday.

He was still trying to take care of family affairs, trying to put his past to rest. It was strange, they hadn't seen each other in about five months but she felt closer than ever to him, they talked every day about everything.

Buffy now knew more than ever about his family background, she knew about the insurmountable odds Lindsey had to overcome to achieve everything that he had.

She respected the hell out of him for not giving in when times got tough and they did, often.

She respected him for getting over the abject poverty of his upbringing, the abuse his dad heaped on him.

Buffy was patient with Lindsey as she waited for him to come back, she knew that he was searching for his brother who had never quite forgiven him for leaving when he could. Especially because his brother was a twin.

They were planning to meet back in Forks in three weeks for everyone's respective graduations and Buffy couldn't wait to see Lindsey and her family again. She had missed them all terribly. Plus there was Faith and Robin's commitment ceremony in June, they definitely couldn't miss her sister slayer taking her vows again in front of everyone.

She replied to his IM 'You flatterer you. How are ya?'

A beep sounded 'Great, I'm looking at the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, this morning officially rocks.'

Buffy frowned, what the hell?

'Should I be worried?'

A shadow fell across her table.

Buffy felt her breath catch, she had been so intent on checking up on her family that she hadn't noticed anyone approach. She inhaled the air and her heart began beating a bit faster, whoever it was smelled so familiar. Spicy and fresh.

"I wouldn't worry if I was you," a voice murmured behind her.

Buffy almost tripped over her laptop as she quickly got off her chair.

Lindsey stood grinning behind her.

Buffy felt like a damn fool but at the sight of him, she definitely felt her knees give a little and she had to support herself by gripping the back of her chair. Her stomach was doing interesting things, butterflies were doing a happy samba at the base of her spine and all she could do was stare at him.

He had changed, that was for sure.

His hair was shorter, blonder, probably burnt out in the harsh Southern sun. His skin was more golden, his eyes seemed almost navy as they searched her over. The tiredness that was so prominent on his face as he had left was gone, replaced by a wry grin. He was wearing a pair of faded blue jeans and a white and black long sleeved tee with a skull motif on the front of it.

"Hey you," Buffy breathed out.

"Hey," Lindsey took her hand in his.

He ran a calloused thumb over her palm.

"How'd you get here?" Buffy had only called his home last night. It would have taken him at least fourteen hours to reach her by plane.

Lindsey shrugged, her hand still in his, "I found a shaman."

Buffy wrinkled her nose, "I thought you said that there was almost no magic doers in Texas or Oklahoma."

Lindsey nodded, raising his blue eyes to meet her bright green ones "there aren't. I found him in Mexico."

"Oh," Buffy felt a blush working its way onto her cheeks. She was kind of glad that her big J-Lo'esque hat was hiding her face, it wouldn't do for him to see her blushing like a freshman at their reunion.

He brought her closer to him, with one hand he gently took off the aforementioned hat and laid it on the table beside her coffee and laptop.

"I like the hair," he ran his fingers through her new locks, "it suits you."

"Thanks," she grinned.

He tipped her chin up, looking as serious as she had ever seen him he asked "how do you feel about getting a traveling companion?"

Buffy took another step closer to him, "I have to go back home in three weeks," she quirked an eyebrow "but getting a travelling companion sounds like just the ticket."

"Good," Lindsey smirked and gently kissed her.

Buffy was complete on her own, her travels had made her realize just how strong a person she was within and that she could withstand anything life would throw at her.

But kissing Lindsey McDonald on a barge in Amsterdam and knowing that this was it- well, things couldn't get much better.

Aro smiled at Marcus, the file in his hand was full of information and pictures of Buffy Summers and her family. The petite blonde was smiling in all her photos, she looked content. Her younger sister was present in almost half her pictures. Aro *almost* felt bad for the plans he had for them. Almost.

"She doesn't have the support of the Council anymore, it's just her and Carlisle's coven now," Marcus was practically purring as he glanced at their detailed plans.

"Good. We make sure that everything is right and move out after the summer is over. I want Buffy Summers and her family dead by the end of the year," Aro slammed the file on the Summers girls shut.

A/N: This story is of course deliberately left open for a sequel.

I will come back to this universe, there are avenues I haven't explored, characters I haven't hooked up and people/vampires I haven't killed off yet.

I need to take a break from this and focus on other fics for a while, but I promise that I will come back.

You can definitely expect more family moments, more shippy stuff, more smut, more drama, more fighting and definitely a lot more eye candy scenes.

I'm so glad that you guys liked this story so much, I feel overwhelmed with all the positive feedback that I've received- it's amazing.

At the moment of this posting I have twenty recs for Explains Everything. Thank you so much for them, I never thought that anyone would like this cross enough to review it much less rec it.


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